


Becoming A Part Of Torchwood

by Quiet_Little_Writer



Category: Doctor Who, Supernatural, Torchwood
Genre: Fluff and Angst, Humor, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-28
Updated: 2017-10-15
Packaged: 2018-01-21 03:03:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 20
Words: 30,611
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1535144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quiet_Little_Writer/pseuds/Quiet_Little_Writer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A 15 year old girl gets abducted. Torchwood rescue her, but she doesn't have any family to live with. Ianto decides to take her in. The story follows her new life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first real fic. If there are any problems please let me know and I will change it

I am walking my normal route home, from the bus stop. It’s a nice enough day, be it a bit overcast. The walk normally takes around 15 minutes, but today I was walking a bit slower, knowing that my stepfather will be home. I rounded a corner to find a car stopped there, idling. I walked past it, just thinking that it was someone that had to make a call or something. I walked across the street. The last thing I remember is hearing footsteps and a sharp pain on the back of my head.

I woke up in a dimly lit room with a mattress on the floor, covered by a clean-looking quilt. My school bag was next to the mattress. I checked my pockets for my IPhone and my headphones. My headphones were there but not my IPhone. I checked my bag next. My MacBook Air was still there, but not much use without Internet or a charger. All my schoolbooks were there. My purse was missing. Everything else was there, except my pencil case. The door to the room opened and a woman stepped in. From what I could see, she was a pretty woman. She looked to be in her mid to late 30’s, though these days I know that looks can be deceiving. She frowned at me, looking around at all my stuff thrown around me.

“Look at the mess you made. I would like it cleaned up,” she scolded at me. I just blinked, surprised at what she had said. I was pretty sure that’s what a mother would say to her child, not someone that she had just kidnapped!

“E-excuse me?” I asked, stuttering a bit. I was confused and scared.

“I said, “Look at the mess you made. I would like it cleaned up.” Now, please. I will come back in 5 minutes and if it isn’t cleaned up, there will be repercussions. And trust me, you won’t like them.” And she walked out the door. I stared after her, shocked. She had an English accent, I realised.

I decided to follow her orders and put my stuff back into my bag. I sat on the edge of the mattress and waited for her to come back. She didn’t seem like your average kidnapper, and she was treating me quite nicely considering the circumstances. What I wanted to know is why would a good-looking woman kidnap a 15-year-old girl? It just doesn’t make sense. My head throbbed and I tentatively touched the spot where I was struck. There was a big lump and when I pulled my hand away there was blood on my fingers. I realised that I could feel it trickling down my neck and swiped at it. She came back in then.

She saw the blood on my hand and came over. I immediately stood up, which made me instantly dizzy. She threw up her hands, as if in a surrender position. She went and came back with a first aid kit.

“Will you let me have a look and take care of it? Or are you just going to fight me and make it even worse?” She asked.

I sighed. I didn’t want her to help me, but I knew that it was a pretty bad cut. I sat back down on the mattress and handed her a piece of wadding from the first aid kit. She took the hint and dabbed at the cut, which made me wince. She poured some antiseptic over the wound, which stung like a bitch. She then put some kind of gel onto it, which numbed it.

“This is going to need stitches. Don’t worry, I’m a doctor,” she said after seeing my face at the first remark. I still didn’t trust her but I let her look after my head wound. She finished with some gauge strips and told me to get some rest and we will talk later.

I didn’t want to listen to her but I laid down, because I knew it would be better for my head. Fatigue must have gotten the better of me because I fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is just learning more about her captor. So, yeah, have fun :)

I had a nightmare, my first nightmare since I was 7. I woke up screaming and crying. I looked around. This isn’t my room. Where are my comfy pillow pets and my blankets that I never actually used, but were there because I cuddled up to them when I was cold? Then the last day hit me like a ton of bricks. I was cold, so I crawled under the quilt. Questions were running through my mind, ones like; What time is it? How long have I been gone? Has mum notified the police yet, or is she still hoping that I’m going to come home? Where am I? Am I still in South Australia, or am I in a different state?

Then things like; I’m hungry and I need to pee. I opened my laptop to check the time. It was 1am. The date was Thursday the 15th of August. It was Tuesday the 13th of August when I was kidnapped. I have been missing for nearly 2 days!!! I must have been out longer than I had thought. I lay awake. There was a window in the room and when I went to look out of it I was surprised that it wasn’t boarded up. It was nailed shut though. Outside was a view of a nice looking street with nice houses and picket fenced front yards lit up by the numerous street lights. Cars were driving down the street. Then a taxi went by, which wasn’t that unusual, but it was what was written on the side of the taxi that caught my attention. The writing on the side of the taxi read “Cardiff Taxi Service”.

What the fuck? How am I in Cardiff? How did I get from Australia to Wales? I’m 90% sure I haven’t been on a plane, and anyway the plane ride would have taken 24 hours and I have been awake for some of that 24 hours. But how did I get here? What the fuck is going on? No probable answers came into my head. I pondered over the question while I waited until sunrise.

About an hour after the sun came up, she walked into my room carrying a tray. On that tray was a bowl of cereal with milk and a glass of what looked like orange juice. She put it on the mattress.

“Where am I?” I asked her. She looked at me, as if considering how much to tell me or to tell me nothing at all. Eventually she sighed.

“You’re in Cardiff, Wales.”

“How did I get here? It’s almost like one minute I was in Australia and then the next I was in Cardiff. That’s not possible. Tell me how I got here and tell me what you want!” I said, shouting the last sentence at her.

She breathed deeply in and let it out of her mouth. “What I tell you is true, no matter how unbelievable it is. You got here just like you said. You were in Australia and now you’re in Cardiff. Ok here is the truth. I did it. I got you here with just a thought. As for what I want with you, well I want you. You’re special. Now, let me see that brain of yours.” She reached out towards my head. I ducked under her arms and shot off the bed, making sure to keep my back against the wall.

Right, she’s fucking nuts. She needs to go to a mental hospital right away.

She cornered me against the wall and reached for my head. I couldn’t dodge her. I could feel her digging in my mind and it was extremely unnerving.

“Now, I have to look into your past, at everyone you have ever met,” she said, more to herself than to me.

“Why?” 

“Because, no one can ever see you again,” she said as if she had just told me about her weekend. 

“W-w-what do you mean?” I stumbled out.

“I mean, everyone you have ever met has to be silenced.” She said it so casually.  
“Don’t worry, they will die a painless and natural death.”

“WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? WHO ARE YOU? WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT FROM ME?” I screamed at her while crying.

“Calm down! I only want to help!”

“AND YOU THINK THAT KIDNAPPING ME AND KILLING EVERYONE I HAVE EVER KNOWN IS FUCKING HELPING? WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?”

She sighed and got out of the way. She walked out and came back with a syringe filled with a clear solution. She started to walk towards me. 

“GET AWAY FROM ME!!!!”

I lunged out at her and slammed the palm of my hand into her collarbone. She yelped out in pain and stumbled back. I used that stumble to push her over. She landed hard on her injured shoulder and I heard her head hit the floor with a meaty clunk. I scrambled past her towards the door and pulled it open. I ran out the door and stopped, not sure where to go now. I looked around and realised that I was standing in a hallway. It was very bare, but it was definitely a hallway. There were four doors leading off from the hallway. I chose one and tried the handle. Locked. Damn it. I tried the next one. The knob twisted. I opened the door to find a lounge room. I raced into the room and slammed the door behind me. I looked around and groaned. There was nothing in here!! I opened the door and ran out again. I opened one of the other doors and this time I found a kitchen. Huh, at least I can defend myself with something more useful than a book. I was at a draw, looking for knives when something slammed into my arm. I yelped and realised I had a needle sticking out of my arm. I tried reaching up to get it out of my arm, but I couldn’t move my arm. It was then that I fell to the ground.

“Don’t worry, it’s just something that will paralyse you for a while. You will still be conscious and aware of everything around you, you just won’t be able to move. Now how about we have a look at your memories?” She said.

She came towards me and I felt my eyes widen in fear. She put her hands on my head. I tried to put up a mental barrier, but it didn’t work.

“Well, what do we have here? Mum and dad weren’t together, don’t like your step-dad, actually care for your brother; don’t like your dad and feel like your friends are more of a family to you than your actual family. Interesting. Such a shame that so many lovely people have to die, but that’s life. That’s what people do.” She said it so casually, like she was talking about feral animals, not caring and loving people.

“There, all done. Everyone you have ever met has suffered a natural and painless death. Now, after that stunt you just pulled, I’m going to have to put in some rules. Rule 1 – you listen to what I say. Rule 2 – don’t lash out or yell at me. Rule 3 – you are not to go out of your room, you have everything you need in your room and in your ensuite. Got them? Good. If you obey them I will allow you to have some freedom back, but until then get used to it. Oh, and I’m putting you on a diet, you can benefit from losing a few pounds.” She then dragged me to my room and walked out, closing the door behind her.

I was left to my thoughts and trust me when I say that that isn’t a good thing. I didn’t know how long I had been lying there but eventually I started to get a tingling sensation through my body, a portraying sign that I would soon have control of my limbs again. I tried flexing my muscles but I couldn’t. Well not yet anyway.

As soon as I had control over my limbs, I went to go test the door. I knew it would be locked but I had to be sure. I didn’t know what to do so I sat down on the mattress and let myself be consumed by my thoughts.

I realised that I was crying when I felt a tear land on my hand. Everyone I have ever known is apparently dead. I need to get out of here, fast. How I’m going to do that is very good question. Think. Nope, nothing. With nothing more to do, I fell back onto my mattress and let my mind wonder.

The door opening snapped me back to the present. I looked over and watched as the door opened. She stepped through.

“Ah, I see you have got the movement of your body back.”

I sat up and glared at her, not saying anything.

“What you did was utterly out of line. I have done nothing to you. I haven’t hurt you, physically in any way,” she said looking at me as if she was disappointed with me.

“You haven’t done anything to me? So, kidnapping me, bringing me here, killing everyone and then poisoning me is nothing? You need to go and see a shrink. You are out of your fucking mind,” I said.

“Don’t use that tone of voice with me. Don’t swear at me either.”

“Why not? I can do whatever the fuck I want! You can go fuck yourself, as far as I’m concerned. I really don’t give a shi-“ I was cut off mid-sentence when she punched me, fair and square on my jaw. I heard a pop and there was a shock of pain that ran along my jaw. I think it is dislocated.

I had had enough. I lashed out at her again and my fist connected with her nose. Her head snapped to the side and when she looked back at me her nose was running like a fountain, with blood dripping everywhere.

I yelped when she punched me again, this time my cheekbone got most of the force. We were then scrambling, trying to get in punches and trying to dodge at the same time. Something caught just above my eyebrow, causing the skin to tear and blood come rushing out. It ran into my eye and I couldn’t see anything. She used this to her advantage and punched me near the temple. The room was tilting at an angle as I fell, not unconscious, but not really with it. She just left the room, her face a mix of blood and forming bruises.

I tried to sit up, but the room spun so I laid back down. I waited for the nausea to pass, thinking about the repercussions of what had just happened. Surely I was going to be in massive trouble, but it was worth it. Worth it to see her in pain, like I have been since the beginning.


	3. Chapter Three

The nausea slowly faded and I was able to sit up. I assessed my injuries. My jaw was either dislocated or broken for I couldn’t move it and it was very swollen. The cut above my eyebrow was bleeding quite profusely and could quite possibly need stitches. My cheekbone was sore, but I think it is only going to bruise. I looked at my hands and my knuckles were red and swollen, the skin broken on most of them. I checked my jaw again, this time feeling for the joint. Sure enough, it was dislocated. 

I prepared myself for the pain, and pushed my jaw back into its socket. I screamed, but the pain was shortly lived. It went back with a pop, and there was only a dull ache left. I moved my jaw up and down, glad that I could move it again. The next worry was to stop the bleeding from the cut. I grabbed the pillow and removed the pillowcase. I put pressure on the wound, hoping to stop the bleeding.   
The bleeding eventually slowed, and I willed myself not to fall asleep. I had lost quite a lot of blood because head wounds bleed the most, and I was afraid that if I fell asleep, I wouldn’t be able to wake up again. But eventually tiredness won over, and I fell asleep.

I haven’t seen her in a week. She hasn’t given me any food but I can get water from the tap in the ensuite, so she knows that I can survive for a while, as long as I have water. I can see my ribs and I have barely any fat left. I was skinny enough when she abducted me, but now I was becoming anorexic. 

A noise outside the door made me jump. The door opened and she walked in. She didn’t say anything just looked me over and then turned to leave.

“Wait! You can’t just leave me here! I said wait!” I ran after her. I grabbed on to her clothing with my arm. She spun around to break lose of the grip and I felt my wrist snap. 

She just hit me across my cut, causing it to start bleeding again, and then another to my jaw, which had only just started to stop hurting. She then punched me a couple of times on my stomach and chest, where there were already bruises from our previous fight. The pain was overwhelming but I didn’t want her to see how much it hurt. She left without a backwards glance.  
“Shit!” I exclaimed. How long was this going to go on for? I went back to the bed and set about to try and stop the bleeding again. If this continues, it might become infected. I also had to do something about my wrist.

A loud bang sounded outside and shouts from people. I didn’t catch anything, but there was definitely a male voice that was sterner than the others. 

I yelled and pounded on the door, trying to get someone’s attention so they could get me out of here. I saw movement from the shadows under the door, and they came to rest facing the door. 

“Open the door,” a male voice said.

The door opened and a man in a long coat stood there. He looked surprised when he saw me, bleeding and bruised, and probably looking terrified. 

“Ianto, Owen, we need you in here. Get her calmed and I will go sort out the bitch,” he said to someone just outside of my eyesight.   
He walked away and two other men entered the room.

“Shit. It’s just a girl,” one of them said. 

The other one came over and reached out a hand. I pulled back, afraid. 

“It’s alright. We’re here to help you. I’m a doctor, it’s ok,” and he reached forward again. 

This time I let him. He took me over to the mattress and sat me down. He inspected my cut and bruising. The other man stood there, looking around and not doing much. 

“Right, this will sting a bit, it’s something to help with the pain, ok?” He said kindly. I nodded.

I flinched as he inserted a needle into my arm. He mumbled a sorry. 

“Can I look at your stomach and chest?” He asked softly.

I just pulled up my shirt to the bottom of my bra. 

“Jesus,” the other man mumbled. He was staring at the old bruises that were now multi-coloured and at the new ones forming. 

It was then that the man in the coat walked in. “What’s the prognosis Owen?”

“She needs some stitches, and she is extremely skinny.” Owen replied while he prodded at my ribs. I yelped in pain when he touched one of them. “And it looks like she has some broken ribs. Her jaw has been dislocated, but then relocated recently. Other than the swelling and bruising there is nothing else that I can see, but I want to take her back to the hub, just to make sure,” he said looking up at the man.

The man conceded and I was being taken out into a car. There I saw two new faces, both women. I was bundled into the back of an SUV, with the man in charge on my right and Owen on my left. 

“What about my stuff?” I asked them.

“Already covered. It’s in the back,” the man on my right said. 

“Where are we going?” I asked.

“Somewhere that I can look at you properly,” Owen said. The other man said nothing.

I was silent for the rest of the ride, looking at the people around me. Owen didn’t look at me; he just looked out of the window. The man on my right was actually quite good looking. He looked to be in his mid-to-late 30’s. One of the women saw me looking around and smiled at me. I gave a tentative smile back. She looked at me sadly. I looked away to the other women. She was of Asian descent that much was obvious. I then looked at the man driving. He looked to be in his early 30’s and was again, quite attractive. He caught my stare in the rear-view mirror. His eyes were a clear blue. He dropped his gaze to the road again.


	4. Chapter 4

I ended up staring at my hands, not sure what to do. It was dark out, and presumably late. We arrived at our destination and I was ushered out of the car. We walked down into some sort of bay, through a door. Then through another secret door and down a hallway. We then went through a door that looked like a clog from an old clock or something like it, into a very interesting building. There was what looked like a water tower in the middle, and there were paths leading off either side. There were other levels, and rooms around. I was lead down into a lab or examine room. I was asked to lie down on the bed. 

I did as I was told. The bed was cold compared to my body. Owen walked around me and started getting equipment ready. He placed some electrodes on me and scanned me with some technology. He then went about and looked at the wall, where I realised; the scans he took were being projected. He mumbled something. 

“Owen, what’s going on?” The man asked. I realised he had an American accent. 

“The scans are all clear Jack. She has a fractured arm and a few broken ribs. That cut will need stitches, and we will need to strap her torso and put her arm in a cast, but she is going to be fine,” he said looking at the man that I think is called Jack. 

“Well that’s good. Ok, Owen get her cleaned up and treat her. Ianto see if you can identify her. Toshiko search through CCTV footage for any sign of her. Gwen check missing persons. Ok everyone let’s go!” Jack told them all. 

I knew they wouldn’t find anything, unless they go nation-wide. I decided not to say anything. Owen was getting some antiseptic wipes ready. 

“This might sting a bit,” he said. I flinched when he put the wipes against my cut. He cleaned the cut then got a needle ready with what I presumed was a local anaesthetic. 

“You don’t have a thing for needles, do you,” he stated it rather than asking. I just shook my head to confirm that he was right.  
He came over and put the needle into my skin. I hissed at the pain and Owen mumbled a sorry. He then did the other side and again I hissed at the pain. He did it two more times then he left the anaesthetic to work. He came back five minutes later and tested whether the anaesthetic had worked, which it had. I couldn’t feel a thing. He set about doing my stitches. We didn’t say anything, which suited me just fine. 

After he had done my stitches he asked if I could take my top off so he could strap my torso. As an afterthought, he said that I also had to remove my bra. I did as I was asked and took off my top and my bra. Owen covered my breasts first, for which I was glad. While he was winding bandages around my chest, Jack walked down the stairs. He stopped at the end of my bed and looked at me. He didn’t say anything, just watched me. It was a bit unnerving but I didn’t let it show. Owen finished strapping my torso and moved on to my arm. He asked me what colour plaster I would want and I answered blue. He set about getting the plaster ready. He put the soft cotton under bandage on, pausing for only a second, but it was enough for me to know that he had seen the scars running across my wrist and then he put the plaster in warm water and started wrapping it around my right wrist. It moulded around my wrist and he started winding it up my forearm. He stopped just before my elbow, so it was only a half-cast. 

“Just let it dry for a minute or so. Then you are free to get up and explore,” Owen said.

“Thank you,” I said to him. He smiled in response. 

“What’s your name?” Jack asked me. I hesitated for a bit but I told him.

“Caitlin. Caitlin Dexter,” I told him.

“Right. You’re not from around here are you?” Jack asked.

“No, I’m actually from Australia,” I told him. Jack stared at me and Owen sort of choked. 

“Ianto!” Jack called. The man that had driven us here appeared. Ianto, interesting name, but it suited him.  
“Yes?” he asked Jack.

“Stay here and write down everything, even if it’s in shorthand,” Jack told Ianto.

Ianto went over to grab a pad of paper and a pen. The others joined them. I guessed the Asian woman was called Toshiko, and the other woman must be Gwen. 

“Caitlin, I need you to tell us everything that happened,” Jack told me. I looked around at the others, and then focussed back on Jack. He was obviously in charge, but he was looking at me kindly. 

So I told them everything that had happened to me. At some stage I had started crying and at the end everyone was looking at me, dumbfounded. Then Jack tentatively pulled me into him, being careful of my ribs. I let him hold me, and I buried my face into his shirt. I eventually stopped crying and pulled back from Jack. He let me go. 

“Jack, can I talk to you for a second,” Ianto asked him. They went out together. 

I was left listening to the others, who were bickering back and forth. I caught the names of the woman and I was right. Toshiko and Gwen. I looked up to where Jack and Ianto were and they were talking, having a rather heated conversation. Jack said something and Ianto stared at him. There was a lot of emotion in that look. There is something going on between those two. That wasn’t a look that you would give your boss.

I looked back at the others. Toshiko and Owen were having a conversation and Gwen was staring up at Jack. Huh, this is interesting. So, Jack and Ianto have a thing, Toshiko and Owen have a thing and Jack and Gwen have a thing. Interesting. And I thought my family was dysfunctional. 

Jack and Ianto came back down and Jack was bombarded by questions from the others. 

“Guys! Please, let’s go up to the meeting room and have a meeting about this. Caitlin follow Ianto, everyone else, get up there.” With that everyone dispersed. Ianto beckoned for me to follow him.


	5. Chapter Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry I haven't updated in a long time. Life's been hectic. From now on I will try and update more frequently. Anyway, enjoy :)

We walked to what looked like a kitchen of some sort. Ianto set about making coffee and he told me to grab something to eat. I grabbed a sandwich and an apple. I helped Ianto carry my cup of coffee he made me. I had a sip and sighed as the coffee swished around my mouth. It was heaven, not too bitter but not too sweet, not too cold but not too hot. 

“Oh my god, this is good. Thanks Ianto,” I said.

“That’s ok. Wait, you know my name?” He asked, surprised.

“Of course I do. I listen and observe. I know everyone’s name. There is you, Jack, Owen, Toshiko and Gwen. You and Jack have a thing going on, Toshiko likes Owen and Gwen likes Jack,” I told him.

“Okay, you know more than you should. You’re good. Uh, we’re here,” he said, somewhat nervously. We had reached a room that looked like it was a meeting room. The others were already there and discussing something. 

We walked in and I sat down in a seat that Ianto had pointed at. Ianto handed out the coffee he had made everyone. I opened my sandwich and started eating. I didn’t realise I was hungry until I had that first mouthful. The sandwich didn’t last long, and I started on my apple. 

“How long has it been since you had something to eat?” Jack asked me. I finished my mouthful and responded.

“About a week.” 

“Ianto, order takeout. Chinese will do.” Jack told Ianto who walked out. 

I had some more coffee, and finished my apple. I put the core in the wrapper from my sandwich. Ianto walked back into the room and the meeting started. 

“Ok, we need to figure out what we are going to do with Caitlin. If we send her home, she will get put through the foster care system. If we send her out here, the same thing will happen. We need to come up with something that won’t allow that to happen. Any ideas?” Jack said, speaking as if I wasn’t there. I sat back and watched them think. My future depends on the five people sitting in front of me. I guess this means that my parents were indeed dead, along with everyone else.

They bounced around a few ideas like Gwen taking me in, but Rhys would question it too much. Ianto eventually came up with a reasonable idea.

“What if she works here? No, think about it. She could be my assistant or someone’s assistant and she can live with me. Come on Jack, there is no other option, unless you want her to live here.” Ianto gave Jack a level look. Jack stared back. 

“Fine, she’s your responsibility Ianto.” 

“She’s good Jack. She knows everyone’s first names and she figured out how dysfunctional we really are.”

“What did you want to study?” Jack asked me.

“Medicine. I always wanted to be a paramedic or a paediatrician.” 

“Ok, Owen teach her,” Jack said to Owen.

“Look, I have no problem with her working here, but I don’t do teenagers. Sorry Jack but I’m not going to teach her,” Owen said sternly to Jack.

“Look, I don’t mind helping Ianto out. I can learn how to make a good coffee and stuff, honestly I don’t care,” I told them. Jack looked me up and down.   
“Fine. You can be Ianto’s assistant and you can live with him. Don’t blame me if you end up here in the late hours of the night, even early hours in the morning.” Jack said. 

He then dismissed us. I followed Ianto’s lead and helped him take the coffee mugs back down to the ‘kitchen’. 

“So what is this place anyway? What do you call yourselves? What do you do?” I asked Ianto.

“This place is Torchwood HQ in Cardiff. We are Torchwood and we catch aliens that come through a rift in space and time. The rift runs straight through the centre of the city and it’s our job to catch anything that comes out of it.” Ianto said.

“Aliens? Rift through time and space? Ok, you’re nuts,” I said.

“Follow me and I will show you,” he said. Intrigued I followed him. We went down into what looked like a bunker. We walked through a door and we were in a room full of cells. 

He walked over to one of the cells and stopped in front of it. He beckoned me over. I walked over and he grabbed a chair and he sat me down in it. I looked at the cell. There was someone in there, seemingly asleep. It stirred when Ianto tapped on the glass. It turned around and what I saw wasn’t what I was expecting. It wasn’t a human that much was clear. It had no nose, black beady eyes and sharp teeth. 

“What is it?” I asked Ianto. 

“We call it a Weevil. They live in the sewers and occasionally one comes up and we have to get it before it gets someone. Don’t go near one or it will rip your throat out,” Ianto said. “And just to clarify, it’s an alien that came through the rift at some point in time.”

I stared at the creature. It snarled back. I looked at Ianto who was looking at me. He was telling the truth. 

“You’re actually telling the truth. Okay, that’s a lot to take in, but not impossible I suppose. I always felt that we couldn’t be the only ones out there. And now I’m babbling,” I said. Ianto laughed. 

“What are you laughing about?” I asked, smiling to show that I meant it in a nice way.

“You. You’re cute when you do that. Why would I have any reason to lie to you?” he asked me.

I smiled sheepishly at him. 

“Because, well, people don’t think I will be able to handle the truth, that I’m too young. And because you have only just met me,” I said.

“I can see that you can handle what’s out there. You probably had some sort of inkling when you were with her. You are not too young, you actually are older mentally, than what you look. As for having just met you, I did arrange it so you would not only be my assistant, but also live with me. By the way, how old are you?” He asked. 

“Fifteen, turning sixteen in……. 2 days actually. What?” Ianto was looking at me, his jaw agape.

“You’re fifteen? Fifteen?” He asked emphasising on fifteen.

“Yes. Why the scepticism? Don’t you believe me?” I asked, sarcastically.

“Of course I believe you, its just – you don’t look fifteen. You look like you’re older, say maybe 17 or 18. And you don’t act like your 15,” he said. I laughed.

“You just don’t know me well enough yet,” I said, grinning. 

Jack’s voice interrupted our conversation.

“Looks like you guys are getting along well. Anyway, Chinese is here. Get some while you can, because it won’t last long here,” he said, winking at me. He laughed at me when I blushed. 

We followed Jack out into the main area of Torchwood. We went back into the meeting room, where there was a buffet of Chinese food. Jack grabbed a plate for me and Ianto and we started putting food on our plates. Shortly after the others came in. We sat around the table and Jack started to tell a story from his past. It was about a time when he was travelling with someone called the Doctor. I listened to Jack tell the story, and watched the other’s reactions. Ianto was looking at Jack with something along the lines of awe. He noticed me watching him and he winked at me. Owen was laughing at something Jack had said. Toshiko was listening intently and occasionally glancing at Owen. Gwen was fiddling with her food while listening to Jack.   
Jack finished his story and we all sat in silence. We finished eating and I helped Ianto clear the table.

“Ok everyone. Today has been a long day, so why don’t you all go home?” The others mumbled their agreements and they left. Ianto stayed back to talk to Jack, so I made myself look busy, but listened in on their conversation.

“Ianto, go home, get her settled and then maybe I might join you,” he added a wink and I burst out laughing. Both men looked at me like they just realised I was still there. Ianto looked embarrassed but Jack just grinned at me.

“I’m sorry, but aren’t you too young to understand that reference?” Jack asked. I laughed.

“No. I’m almost 16 and went to an all-girls school. Trust me, it’s pretty much all we talked about. We were deprived of men, so we talked about it,” I said.   
Jack just grinned at me, seemingly pleased that I said that. Ianto looked perplexed, like he couldn’t imagine me and my friends talking about sex. 

“Right, I gather you know about Ianto and I?” Jack asked me with a knowing glint in his eye.

“Yes, I knew from when you two talked after I had told you my story. The look that passed between you two isn’t a look that you would give your boss, so I knew then. Just like I knew that Toshiko likes Owen and Gwen likes you,” I told him. He looked at me almost like he was examining me.

“You’re good, I’ll give you that. Now go home, the pair of you. You will have a fresh start tomorrow,” he told us.

Ianto and Jack kissed goodbye, and Jack pulled me into a hug, which I returned. 

“Thank you,” I whispered into his ear, on the tips of my toes just to reach his ear. 

“You’re welcome,” he said and then he kissed the top of my head.


	6. Chapter Six

Ianto and I headed to his flat. We walked into his flat and even though it was a bit messy, it felt warm and cosy. I think that I will eventually be able to call this place home. 

“Sorry about the mess, I wasn’t expecting you to be here,” Ianto said.

“Ianto, I’m a teenager. Mess doesn’t bother me, well ok if it’s food scraps or something, but general clutter is fine.”

Ianto took me on a tour, even though I didn’t need it. We started in the kitchen/dining room/lounge room, and then we went to the bathroom and toilet, laundry and the bedrooms. Ianto’s bedroom was right across the hallway from the spare room, which was now my room. I walked into my room and looked around. The walls were painted a dark blue colour, which is good because my favourite colour is blue. There was a double bed in the middle of the room and a built in wardrobe along one wall. There were also bedside tables. 

“There isn’t much but we can always go and buy some stuff. Oh I have your stuff as well. Your phone was there so I grabbed it. I think we might need to get you a charger for both your phone and your laptop, but other than that you’re good to go. We will buy clothes later, for now use these,” he said, disappearing into his bedroom. He came out a few minutes later with a t-shirt and a pair of trackies. 

“I’ll leave you to get dressed then,” he said heading out the door.

“Wait, Ianto.”

“Yeah?”

“Um, can you help me get my top off? It’s just with my ribs and arm, I can’t really do it myself,” I asked awkwardly. I wasn’t used to asking for help.

“Oh, right yeah. Arms up.” I put my arms up and he pulled my t-shirt over my head. 

“Thanks, I will be ok now,” I said. He nodded and walked out. I got dressed and went back out. Ianto was sitting on the sofa reading something. 

“Better?” he asked.

“Much,” I replied. The t-shirt was a bit big, but I like them like that. The pants were a good fit.

“Well, I’ll be just across the hall if you need anything. Just knock first. Okay?” He asked.

“Ok. Goodnight Ianto.”

I went to my room and climbed into the bed. Exhaustion took over and as soon as I closed my eyes, I was out like a light. 

I was trapped in the room, but this time there was no mattress or ensuite. There was only the room with bare walls and nothing else but me in it. She walked in, but she wasn’t human. Her teeth were pointed and she had claws for fingernails, she had 6 legs and 8 eyes. She started coming towards me and I started screaming.

I was being shaken awake. I yelped in pain when someone grabbed me around the middle where my broken ribs were. They moved their grip, and I slowly became aware of what was going on. Ianto had his arms wrapped around me, trying to keep me from lashing out. I must have had a nightmare and started screaming and he came in and tried to help me. He slowly released his grip, but I didn’t want him to. I turned my face into his bare shoulder and sat there with him comforting me. I realised that he was only wearing his underwear.

“Hey, it’s ok. You’re safe now, it’s ok. Come on, want to talk about it?” He said.

I shook my head.

“Stay with me, at least until I fall asleep again. Please?” I asked him.

He nodded and got under the covers. He pulled me back into a hug, being careful of my ribs. In the safety of his arms I fell asleep.  
I woke up sometime in the night and found Ianto fast asleep next to me, snoring lightly. He was face down on the pillows. I desperately wanted to take a photo but my phone wasn’t there. I was saved from having to move however, when Jack walked in and saw us. He looked at Ianto and smiled, then he looked at me and realised I was awake. I motioned with my hands for him to get a photo of Ianto, which he happily obliged. He then went into Ianto’s room and I fell asleep again.

I woke up when Ianto started to stir next to me. He looked at me sleepily. There was a crash from the kitchen and then Jack was swearing profusely. Ianto and I looked at each other and got out of bed to see what Jack had done. We found Jack cleaning up a broken glass, which he had knocked off the counter. He looked up at our approach and then went back to cleaning up the glass. 

“Jack, when did you get here?” Ianto asked.

“Last night. I found you asleep and Caitlin was, but she was awake when I checked in on you. What happened by the way? Why were you in her bed, dressed in your underwear?” Jack asked.

“She had a nightmare and she didn’t want to be alone, so I stayed with her and I must have fallen asleep,” Ianto explained. 

“Right, I thought it was that. Anyway, the others are looking after everything at the hub, so I thought it might be nice for us to go do some shopping and get some breakfast while we are out.”

Ianto and I agreed and I went to get dressed. I was changing back into the clothes I had been wearing yesterday that they had managed to find. I changed my pants and was about to change my top when I realised that I still needed help. I went across the hall to Ianto’s bedroom and knocked on the door.

“Yeah?” he called from inside.

“I need help with my top again,” I told him.

“I can’t help, get Jack to help,” he said.

I walked into the kitchen to find Jack reading the paper. He looked up and smiled at me. 

“What’s up?” he asked.

“I need some help getting my top off and Ianto’s busy, so could you please help?” I asked. 

“Yeah. Ok arms up,” he said, the same thing that Ianto had said, I mused. I lifted my arms, wincing a bit. Jack lifted my top off, and then he ran his hands on the bruises that were visible. 

“Does it hurt?” he asked. I nodded my head. It did hurt and it didn’t help that I had slept on my side and on my cast, which had dug into my side. 

“We will get you some pain killers when we are out,” Jack said.

“Ok,” I said and went and got dressed. 

When I went back out, Ianto was dressed in one of his suits, looking rather handsome. Jack was standing in the kitchen and he held out a glass of juice to me, which I took. I drank the juice and handed the glass back. Jack just put it on the sink.

“Ok, is there like a brush or something that I can use?” I asked the boys.

“Uh, I think there’s a comb in the bathroom cupboard. Hang on let me look,” Ianto said. I followed him into the bathroom and he looked through the cupboard under the sink. 

“Ah, here we are,” he said triumphantly, holding up a comb. 

“Thanks,” I said and started to do my hair, which was a difficult task to do with only one hand. 

“Here let me help you,” Ianto offered. I handed him the comb. He started to detangle my hair. I looked at my reflection in the mirror. I had a nice shiner on my right eye and the cut just above it. I had a lovely bruise on my left cheek. Ianto finished my hair, which I was surprised at considering that my hair is thick and about halfway down my back, and told me to go out and wait with Jack.

Jack was fiddling around with something, but stopped when I walked in. Ianto came out and we left. We bundled into the SUV and set off.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shopping time!

We pulled into a park at a shopping centre and got out. Jack had sat in the shotgun seat and Ianto had been driving, which left me with the back seat. The drive was nice. Ianto and Jack were talking about something that had happened the other day and I sat there and looked at the scenery of Cardiff. I didn’t know much about the city, hardly anything actually. I have a lot to learn.

We walked into the shopping centre. It was massive. Bigger than Marion back in South Australia. 

I gaped at the shopping centre, spinning around trying to take in everything at the same time. Jack grabbed me and Ianto just chuckled. 

“You’re going to get dizzy if you do that. Now, where to first?” Jack asked. I shrugged my shoulders, I didn’t know. 

“How about clothes and then anything else you need?” Ianto suggested. I nodded my head.

“Oh, can I get some sneakers? I don’t like any other shoes,” I said. Jack and Ianto just looked at me.

“You’re a girl, you’re meant to love high heels,” Jack said. 

“That’s a stereotype. I hate high heels and dresses and skirts. So, can I?” I asked them. Jack and Ianto looked at each other and burst out laughing. Jack nodded his head, so I guess that was a yes.

We set out heading to different shops and trying on different stuff. Jack and Ianto soon picked up on the sort of clothes that I like and started helping me, picking stuff for me to try on.   
I ended up getting lots of pairs of jeans and shorts, lots of tops with various prints on them and quite a few jumpers and jackets. We missed breakfast so we decided to get some brunch. I got McDonald’s because it was something that I knew we had in Australia. Jack and Ianto got some chips and a burger, while I got chicken nuggets in a kid’s meal. Because that’s normal. You’re never too old for a kid’s meal, I say. 

“Ok, so we have got clothes. What else do you need, other than sneakers?” Ianto asked.

“Well, I need my own brush, toothbrush, razor, shaving cream, sanity items and shampoo and conditioner. Also, can I get some books to keep me occupied? Oh, and I need hair ties. Oh and a cable for my phone and a laptop charger,” I said. 

“Yeah, you can get some books. The laptop charger might be a bit difficult to get, but the other stuff will be easy. Oh, do you need data and credit for your phone?” Jack asked.

“Um, yeah. I was with a company called Optus, but I don’t think you guys have that here,” I said. Jack and Ianto shook their head. 

“I have Wi-Fi at home which you can use, but yeah we will need to get you a new sim card for one of our companies here,” Ianto said. I nodded at him. I ate my meal while I watched Jack and Ianto bicker at one another. It was actually quite adorable. They finished their meal and we set off again.

We went to go sort out my phone first, which was quite tedious. The shop assistant kept asking questions and I had to not answer the question, but make sure it was enough of an answer to make her happy. One question sort of tripped me up. She asked whether one of them was my dad and I didn’t know what to say. I asked her why she said that and she replied that I look a lot like Ianto, which I don’t see. I said that no, he wasn’t my dad and left it at that. She fixed my phone and we went to go buy some shoes. 

I ended up getting 4 pairs of sneakers. The first pair is a pair of Asics, for general use for work and stuff. The other pairs are more for going out. I got a pair of Nike Air Max’s, which are a deep blue. Jack said it looked like the TARDIS blue, but I had no idea what that was. I got a pair of Nike high-tops that are a deep purple colour. The last pair is a pair of black converses. Ianto liked my style of shoes and Jack liked the Nike’s. 

We then went and did some food shopping, also getting the stuff that I required. Jack was like a big kid, picking stuff out and pouting when Ianto said no to him. I decided to join him and together we picked out the most random things that we could find. Ianto said no every time and told us to grow up. Jack just pouted and looked at Ianto with puppy eyes. Ianto didn’t surrender though, so Jack went back to finding random stuff. It was really fun, especially with some of the looks from other people there. We went up and paid for it. The checkout guy was pretty cute so I naturally checked him out. Jack saw this and grinned at me. When we had paid Jack decided to make a very audible comment.

“I saw you checking him out. Don’t worry, he was checking you out as well.” I’m pretty sure the guy at the checkout heard Jack say that. I went bright red and walked to Ianto.

“Control your boss,” I said. 

Ianto chuckled and said, “There is no way of controlling him. Believe me I’ve tried.” 

I didn’t want to think about that last part so I decided to go and playfully punch Jack on the arm.

“Was he really checking me out?” I asked, curious to see whether Jack was telling the truth.

“Yep. He looked you up and down and then blushed. It was pretty cute,” Jack said. I slapped his arm. “Ouch!” He cried, even though it didn’t hurt him.

“You can’t say that. Besides you have Ianto for that,” I said. Jack grinned and looked at Ianto, who was in turn looking at us.

“You guys are unbelievable. You are worse than Jack,” he said pointing at me, “and you need to stop being a bad role model,” he said pointing at Jack.

“Moi? A bad role model?” Jack feigned innocence. 

“Yes you. You two will get along really well, I can see it.” Ianto said. That last comment was true. Jack and I were already joking and mucking around together, and I can tell that we have the same sense of twisted humour. 

“Have we got what we need?” Ianto asked. 

“Can I get some books? Then we are done,” I said. Ianto nodded and we headed in to a bookstore. 

The bookstore was really big, with rows and rows of books, both old and new. I walked down one row, trailing my hand behind me touching the spines of the books with my fingers. I realised that Jack and Ianto were staring at me, so I decided to try and find some books that I would like to read. There were so many books. This is going to be a hard decision. I squatted down on my heels and started sorting through the books. I looked for books with interesting names and a good plot line. I found a Stephen King book called Under The Dome, which I decided would be good to read. I decided on some other books and we left.

We dropped the stuff off at Ianto’s place and then we went back to the hub. Owen, Gwen and Tosh were playing basketball when we walked in. They stopped, but Jack told them to have some fun, so they continued. I plonked my bum in Owen’s chair and watched. After a while they had had enough. 

“Oi, get out of my chair, newbie,” Owen called to me. I stuck my tongue out at him. “You might wanna be careful with that. It could end up detached.” I sighed and sat on his desk instead. He glared at me and I ignored him. 

He started messing around on the computer and I watched. I sat there for about 10 minutes then got bored and went over to see what Tosh was doing. She smiled at me when I came around to her desk. 

“A bit bored?” She asked. 

“Yeah. I’m not one to wait around and do nothing. I’m really impatient,” I replied. She nodded her head, like she knew the feeling. “What are you doing?” I asked her.

She then proceeded to tell me that she was working on a piece of alien technology that they believed was used for vaporizing people. I listened, interested and found it amazing. She finished her explanation and went back to her work. I let her, and moved onto Gwen.

She was typing when I came over, but she stopped when she saw me. She smiled at me. I sat at the edge of her desk.

“So, how’s your day been?” I asked her.

“Alright, although it was a bit boring, but sometimes boring is good,” she said.

“Yeah. I get too impatient though, so boring isn’t good for me,” I said. She laughed.

“Well, this is a good place for you.” I didn’t know what she meant by that. I was just about to ask but Jack’s voice drifted through the hub.

“Caitlin, Owen down to the examination room.”

I looked over at Owen, who was just as confused as I was. We walked down into the examination room to find Jack and Ianto standing there. They looked up when we walked down the stairs.


	8. Chapter 8

“What’s up Jack?” Owen asked.

“We need to check her medical records, Torchwood procedure. Owen can you get them and go through them with us?” Jack asked. Owen nodded and started up the stairs.

“Oh, medical records will be under Caitlin Prior, instead. Two last names, so yeah,” I told him.

“Right,” Owen said and went up the stairs. He came back down sometime later, holding a big, thick folder, which I knew were my medical records. “Geez, someone went to hospital a lot,” he said. I just laughed.

“You have no idea. It was my second home,” I said. Owen placed the folder down on a table and opened it to the first page. 

“Ok, so you were born on the 24th of August, 1997. That means that your birthday is tomorrow. You had a bit of trouble when you were born. You were born with the umbilical cord wrapped around your throat. You were also born with a tumour, which they removed. When you were little, you had kidney reflux, which was quite severe. They were talking about an operation, but it went away when you were little. 6 years old, you had a broken arm, 8 you had stitches in your upper lip. Cracked your head open twice. Broken thumb, another broken arm. Oh, this is an interesting injury. You fractured your nodule on your femur. Huh, and the rest were things like suspected appendicitis and such. Wait, here’s one – double pneumonia and a partially collapsed lung. That left scar tissue on your lungs, so now you breathe shallower, am I right?” I nodded my head. “Right, that’s pretty much it. So, one operation and lots of broken bones. Also, lots of hospital visits.” He finished and looked at me. 

“I wasn’t as bad as my brother. Between the two of us, we were in hospital at least once a year, if not more. Also, add another broken arm, stitches and cracked ribs to that list.” I said.

“You aren’t a girly girl, are you?” Jack asked. I laughed.

“No, I’m anything but. I don’t mind hurting myself, and besides they make really good stories,” I said. The men just shook their heads. 

“Right, anyway you seem pretty healthy. A bit skinny, but we can fix that. Once you recover from your injuries, you should be in perfect health. Don’t try to do too much or you’ll only slow your recovery time down.” Owen said. I nodded to show that I understood what that meant. 

“Ok, you can go back to whatever you were doing,” Jack told us. Owen went back up the stairs, but I hung back. “What’s up?” Jack asked.

“I’m bored. The others are all working on something and I don’t know what to do,” I complained. 

“Well, I’m sure Ianto can find something for you to do. Ianto once you’re done come and see me in my office, I need to talk to you about something,” Jack said. Ianto nodded.

“Yes sir. Ok, let’s see what needs to be done. Come on, follow me,” Ianto said, walking away. I jogged to catch up to him. 

We walked around for a bit, with Ianto trying to find something for me to do that doesn’t require two hands or bending over. He ended up sitting me on the sofa with a book. The book was relatively new and it looked really well loved. Someone has read this a number of times. The book was one that I have heard of, but never really thought of reading. It was Ice Station by Matthew Reilly, which I have heard really great reviews about. And, Matthew Reilly is Australian, so that helps.

“Here, read this. It’s my copy, so don’t ruin it,” Ianto said and left.

I curled myself up into the couch and started reading. Soon I was in the world of fantasy, oblivious to what was going on in the hub. The book is amazing, if you like blood and gore. I was so entranced by the book, that I didn’t notice Gwen, Owen and Tosh leave, done for the day. I was about halfway through the book when someone covered the pages with their hands.

 

“Hey!” I called, “I was reading that.”  
“Obviously, that’s why you didn’t notice that I was talking to you,” Jack said. 

“Oh, sorry. What’s up?” I said sheepishly.

“It’s time to go home,” he said. I looked at the time and realised that it was 6pm. I had been reading for 3 hours straight. 

I got up from the couch and stretched. I looked around and found Ianto at the little kitchen.

“Are you coming or staying here?” I asked Jack. He looked at me, his face impossible to read.

“I’m coming. I need a break from the hub.” I nodded. Ianto came and stood next to Jack.

“Let’s go. I’ll make some tea when we get home.”

We piled into Ianto’s car and set off. The drive was short, with Jack and Ianto talking about something from the hub. They were talking about something with a name Myfanwy.

“Who’s Myfanwy?” I asked.

“It’s Torchwood’s pet,” Jack said.

“What sort of pet?” I asked.

“A pterodactyl,” Ianto answered.

“A what? Are you serious? A pterodactyl?” I said.

“Yeah. She came through the rift, and Ianto and I captured her. We then decided to keep her,” Jack said.

“It was how I got my job at Torchwood,” Ianto said, smiling at the memory. 

“I swear, if you guys keep doing these things I’m going to end up insane,” I said.

“Doing what?” Jack asked.

“Saying things like you have a pet pterodactyl casually, like you’re just talking about the weather,” I said. Jack laughed and Ianto smiled. 

“I’m screwed, aren’t I?” I said.

“Well, yeah, basically,” Jack said. They both burst out laughing. 

“Real mature guys.” I said. Ianto pulled up to his flat. 

I got out the car and followed Ianto to the door. My foot slipped, and I felt my body falling backwards. I braced myself for the pain, but it never came. Jack had caught me. I looked up and saw the smile on his lips.

“Careful,” was all he said. He helped me into a standing position. I mumbled thanks, my face red. I walked inside and headed straight to my room. 

I put all my new stuff away, while listening to some music. Once I had done that, I turned my music off and decided to go through my photos. I found photos of my friends and family. There were photos of my friends birthday parties from this year, when I had dressed up as different characters. There was my friend’s party when I had gone as Dean and my friend had gone as Sam from Supernatural. I was going through them, crying when Ianto walked in. He looked at me and came over to sit down on my bed.

“Hasn’t anyone ever taught you to knock?” I asked jokingly.

“No, not really. Come here. What’s the matter?” he asked. He opened his arms and I crawled into them. He wrapped them around me and I put my head on his shoulder. I showed him my phone.  
“Are those your friends?” he asked. I nodded, more tears escaping. “They look like nice people. Tell me about them,” he said. 

“Well, this one’s Alicia,” I said pointing to her, dressed as Snow White. “She was like a sister to me. This was taken at her 16th birthday party. We had to dress up as someone from a movie, so I went dressed as The Mad Hatter. Megan went as Alice.” I told Ianto all about my friends. By the end I was crying so hard that I gave up on talking. Ianto just rubbed my back and murmured reassurances. I eventually settled down, exhausted. Ianto pulled me up and lead me to the kitchen where there was dinner. 

Jack looked up, worried. He saw me and got up. He didn’t say anything; he just pulled me into a hug. I melted into his arms. He pulled away, much to my disappointment. I grabbed my plate of spaghetti bolognaise and headed over to the table. Jack and Ianto followed suit.

“I hope you like spaghetti bolognaise,” Ianto said. I smiled.

“It’s my favourite food,” I said. I sprinkled some Parmesan cheese over the top and dug in. It tasted just like my mum’s. It wasn’t long until my plate was empty. I grabbed my plate and stood up. “Drinks?” I asked.

“Yeah, there should be some coke in the fridge. Pour us one too,” Ianto said. I nodded and went into the kitchen. I put my plate in the sink and grabbed some clean glasses. I poured everyone a drink and headed back to the table. 

“Can we get a pet?” I asked. Ianto looked up, startled.

“Where did that come from?” Jack asked.

“I don’t know. I have always grown up around animals and its weird not having one around,” I said.

“I’m not sure if I’m allowed animals in this flat. Certainly not dogs, at least. I’ll check tomorrow,” Ianto said. 

“Ok, well I’m happy with a cat. I’ll look after it.” I said. “Can I have a shower?” I asked.

“Yeah, of course.” Ianto said. I got up to leave then realised something. 

“Oh crap,” I said.

“What?” Jack and Ianto asked in unison.

“I want to wash my hair, but I can’t with this bloody cast on.”

“Oh, right. Um, put a plastic bag around it and tape it up, then you should be able to use it,” Ianto said. 

I got a plastic bag and some tape and put it over my cast. I wound the tape around my arm, making sure that it was tight enough so water couldn’t get through it. I got my pyjamas from my room, which I realised we forgot to get some. I was still using Ianto’s clothes. Oh well, they were comfy. I went into the bathroom and got undressed, then undid my bandages. 

When I got out of the shower, I dried my hair as best I could. I took the plastic off my arm and started getting dressed. I was half dressed when I realised that I wouldn’t be able to put my bandages back on, at least not with one arm. Shit. I stuck my head out of the door.

“Ianto!” I called.

“Yeah?” came the response.

“Are you any good with strapping ribs?” I asked.

“No. Jack’s better than me, get him to do it,” Ianto called. 

“Ugh, fine. Jack!” I called again.

“Yeah, I’m coming.” I heard him reply.

He walked to the door, and I let him in. I still had the towel wrapped around my upper half, and I handed him the bandages. I dropped the towel and he set to wrapping my torso up. Once he was done I put my shirt on.

“Is that Ianto’s?” Jack asked.

“Yeah, we didn’t buy pyjamas today and this was what he gave me last night. Hey Jack, could you please brush my hair?” I asked, seeing as I couldn’t do it myself. He sighed and held out his hand.  
I put the brush in his hand and began de-tangling my hair. After a while, Ianto came to see what was taking so long. He stopped in the doorway with a smug smile on his face. Jack looked at him and stuck out his tongue at Ianto. Ianto just laughed and got his phone out to take a photo. Jack posed, so I did too. Ianto took the photo and laughed at it.

“Very nice guys. I think I might frame it,” he said, holding out the phone. I looked at the photo and burst out laughing. Jack looked very sassy with his hairbrush, striking a very gay pose. I had posed with my arms crossed and a mad, impatient look on my face. 

“Oh look Jack, we are so photogenic! We’re sooo hot!” I said to Jack, laughing. Jack looked at the photo.

“Oh, we are so framing that,” Jack said. “Ok, I’m done. Is that all?” Jack asked sarcastically.

“Yes, that’s all. Thank you Jack,” I said. “Well I’m going to go to bed, so night all.”

“Night. Call me if you need anything,” Ianto said. I nodded.

“Night, don’t let the bedbugs bite,” Jack said.

“Ha ha very funny,” I replied. I went to my bedroom and crawled into bed.

I was tired, but I couldn’t fall asleep. I decided to read some more. After a while I heard Ianto and presumably Jack go into Ianto’s bedroom, judging by the two sets of footsteps I could hear.   
I went back to reading my book. After a while I started to hear some mumbles coming from Ianto’s bedroom. I ignored it and went back to my book. After a while those mumbles turned into moans and groans. Great, just what I needed. Jack and Ianto having sex in the next room. I put my book away and plugged in my headphones into my phone. I put on some Fall Out Boy hoping to drown out the noise from Jack and Ianto.


	9. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry I haven't been posting much, I've been editing my work and debating about re-writing it. That's why I'm editing this chapter :) But I have a lot more chapters, so I post more. YAY!!

I was walking down a hallway in my friend’s house. What was I doing here? I walked to the last door in the hallway and pushed it open. An eyeball fell off the door. Ok, that’s weird. Maybe it’s Halloween or something and Alicia decided to try to scare me. I pushed the door open even more. Alicia was asleep on her bed. For some reason I decided to turn the lights on. What I thought was Alicia turned out to be just a pile of clothes. I looked around the room. Hanging from the ceiling was various body parts. I screamed and looked over to the bed. In amongst all the pillows I saw Alicia’s head, with a trail of blood leading away from the bed. 

I screamed and fell off my bed. I groaned at the pain that radiated through my torso. Damn these stupid ribs! I heard footsteps from Ianto’s room and a few seconds later my bedroom door swung open. Standing there, stark naked, was Jack. 

“Ewwww, g rated!!!” I yelled at him, looking away.

“What? Don’t you love all this?” he asked, while motioning to his body. I was saved from answering when Ianto came in and gave Jack some pants to put on. 

“Are you ok?” Ianto asked. I risked looking towards Jack, relieved that he at least had pants on. I groaned and fell back onto the floor, not wanting to get up. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the feeling of the cold floor compared to my hot and sweaty body. I opened my eyes again to find Jack and Ianto hovering around me. Ianto’s face was full of concern and worry, while Jack had a look that can only be described as curiosity. 

“I’m fine, just you know, wanted to say goodnight to the floor,” I said. Jack laughed and Ianto cracked a smile. 

“You do realise that it’s 3 in the morning right?” Jack asked. Huh, no I didn’t know that. Whoops. 

“Um, well now I do. I fell off my bed, but now I’m fine. I think,” I said.

“We heard you. You were mumbling and trashing around. Jack was about to come in and wake you when you fell off your bed,” Ianto said. I blushed. I didn’t like it when people pitied me. And I know they are only trying to help, but that doesn’t mean that I like it. 

“Yeah, well it’s over now. Before this all happened I never used to have nightmares. I think the last one I had was when I was 7. I don’t think I can go back to sleep now,” I told them. Jack reached down and helped me up. 

He walked me to my bed and sat down with me. 

“Go and make a cup of hot chocolate for her. I will stay, now go,” he said to Ianto. Ianto looked like he wanted to protest but he walked away. 

“Want to talk about it?” Jack asked me. I shook my head.

I moved over on the bed and lied down. Jack looked at me and followed suit. We were silent for a while, just enjoying each other’s company.

“Jack?” I asked.

“Hmmm?” he answered.

“Was the woman who took me an alien?” I asked him.

“The truth?” he asked, seriously.

“The truth,” I agreed.

He sighed. “Yes, she was.”

“What happened to her?” I asked. He looked at me.

“What do you mean? Why do you ask?” He asked me, obviously not getting it.

“Ok, let me rephrase. What did you do to her?” I asked again.

“We took care of her. Let’s just say that she will not be bothering you or anyone for quite a while,” he said.

I looked at him, and I realised that he didn’t do anything. Someone else did. I snuggled closer to Jack, resting my head on his bare shoulder. He pulled the covers back and pulled them over us. Ianto walked in with the hot chocolate and he gave it to me. I tentatively tried some and immediately moaned at the flavours coating my tongue. It was perfect. Ianto climbed on the bed on the other side of me. I snuggled in closer to Jack so Ianto had more room. This bed wasn’t exactly designed for 3 people. I drank the rest of my hot chocolate. Jack and Ianto were whispering about something above me. I finally drifted into a peaceful sleep.

I woke up the next morning with me spooning Jack and Ianto spooning me. I tried to move out between the two, but I couldn’t move. So I stayed there, in-between the two men that have taken me in. The two men that I am starting to think of as parents. I felt Ianto stir behind me. He threw his arm over me, placing it on Jack’s arm. Jack mumbled something, but didn’t wake up. Ianto’s arm fell from Jack’s arm, and tucked itself between Jack and me. Ianto decided to snuggle close to me, and in doing that he squeezed my stomach, which in turn, hurt my ribs. I bit back a yelp and moved Ianto’s arm to my hip. 

I traced patterns on his arm, waiting for them to wake up. Ianto mumbled incoherently into my ear. His arm tightened, and I could tell he was waking up. He groaned and hit Jack on the arm. Jack woke up with a start. He tried to turn around but he fell off the bed. Ianto and I laughed at him. He got up with a huff and glared at us and walked out of my room. 

Ianto followed Jack and I got ready for the day. At the hub nothing was happening. Ianto just sent me away, so I read my book. When I finished it, I decided to go for a wonder in the archives. I found Ianto down there, rummaging around in a box full of alien tech. I was about to ask him what he was looking for, but Jack’s voice cut across the air.

“Ianto! We’ve got a loose weevil. Meet us at the car. Caitlin, you can come and watch.”

Ianto jerked up and started running. As he ran passed he grabbed my arm and pulled me along with him. We ran to the car, Ianto stopping to grab some equipment. Tosh stayed behind to track the weevil. Ianto got in the front, Jack riding shotgun, Gwen on the right and Owen on the left with me riding middle. Jack was communicating with Tosh with one of the earpieces. Ianto was listening and taking directions. There were lots of sharp turns.

We pulled up in front of an old abandoned warehouse. We all rushed in. I followed Ianto to a pillar that we hid behind. I peeked around and saw the weevil. Ianto told me to stay there while he ran off to get something. I stayed where I was, facing away from the weevil. I heard the other’s shuffling around, and apparently the weevil did too. It came around the pillar and sniffed at me. Ianto came back in, and saw where the weevil was. He mouthed, “Don’t move” to me. I stayed where I was, not moving. It was sniffing at my cast, and then it started to chew on it. Ianto came up behind the weevil, trying to go unnoticed when the others came rushing in. They pounced on the weevil, which clamped its mouth down on my arm. Its strong jaws broke through my cast and into my arm beneath. I screamed, which made the weevil jerk back, its teeth still lodged in my arm. There was this jolt in my arm and the weevil was off. 

Jack, Gwen and Ianto were sedating the weevil while Owen ran off. He came back with his medical kit. He led me over to the car. The others came around and put the weevil in the back. 

"I won't be able to fix this at the hub, I don't have the equipment." Owen said, looking at my arm.

“Owen, drop us off at the hospital and then take the weevil back to the hub. I’ll let you know what’s happening later,” Jack told him. Owen nodded and we were in the car, racing to the hospital.


	10. Chapter 10

Jack and Ianto got out and I followed. They lead me around to A & E, then to paediatrics. I was rushed through the waiting room, into a bed. The nurses were asking lots of questions. Jack answered them as best he could. When they were asked who they were, Ianto spoke up.

“I’m her father,” he said. 

“And you?” the nurse asked Jack.

“Her Uncle,” Jack said. I smiled at that. The doctor came in and looked at my arm. He said some medicine gibberish and basically said that I needed to have surgery. 

The cartilage and muscle in my arm has been ripped to shreds, so they had to stitch it back up. Huh, not how I thought my 16th birthday would plan out. In hospital to have surgery. About 10 minutes after the doctor left I was being moved to theatre where they rushed me in. 

I woke up in recovery with nurses everywhere. My eyes were all blurry and I was freezing. One of the nurses came over with a nice and warm blanket and put it over me. I want to go back to sleep, but they want me awake. I had an oxygen mask on my face. I tried to move it to a more comfortable position, but something in my arm started hurting. I looked down to see what it was. There was an IV in my arm. Right, okay must have done that when I was under. 

After about 5 minutes they took me up to what was obviously the surgical ward in the paediatrics unit in the hospital. Jack and Ianto were there which made me feel better. 

“Hey kiddo, how you feeling?” Jack asked me.

“Um, I feel…fantastic!” I said, my voice dripping with sarcasm. Jack chuckled. The nurse said that she would come over with some painkillers soon. 

I looked down at my arm, which was covered in bandages. “Great, now I can’t even move my fingers. Ugh, I’m going to hate this,” I mumbled to myself.

“Yeah, sucks to be you,” Jack said.

“Oi, I can still punch you,” I told him. He chuckled and did an imitation of me punching with my left arm. “Don’t ……… antagonise an injured person, they are more likely to hurt you,” I told him. Ianto laughed. “Oi, don’t laugh at that. It’s true.” 

“Right. How’s the pain?” he asked.

“Um, well let me see. Yep, as I thought. The pain is the pain that everyone has after having surgery,” I said. I was very sarcastic today. 

“I can’t think of why you’re in pain,” Jack said.

“Yeah, neither. Wait, is it my arm? No, can’t be. Um, my ribs? No, they’re fine. My cut? No, that doesn’t hurt. Oh oh I got it! It’s my tooth, yeah that’s why I’m in such pain! Finally!” I joked. Owen walked in on that last part and stared at me weirdly.   
That just made me crack up laughing. 

“Is she ok?” he asked Jack and Ianto. 

“Yeah, she’s just being a weirdo,” Jack answered.

“Hey!” I retorted. He just smiled. 

“Right. Here, happy birthday,” he said, while handing me a box. I had to get Ianto to open it. Inside was a necklace with a little 16 charm hanging off it.

“Thank you. You really didn’t have to,” I said. He just shrugged. 

The nurse came back with some painkillers. They were in liquid form, so the nurse put them through my drip. I could feel them going up my veins in my arm because they were cold. Owen was talking to the nurse about what they were giving me. The painkillers were already starting to work. Tosh and Gwen came in. They gave me a blue teddy bear, which was very cute.

“Thank you,” I said. Then I looked at it, pouting. Ianto must have realised this.

“What’s up?” Ianto asked. I looked at him, then back to my new bear.

“I don’t know what to call him,” I complained. 

“Hmmm. Any suggestions Jack?” Ianto asked Jack.

“Yeah, actually. What about Doctor? It’s the right blue, and it can remind you of being here with us. It’s just a suggestion.” He shrugged.

“Hmm, Doctor. I like it! Well done Uncle Jacky! Hahahaha I can call you that. But you’re more like a dad that everyone likes. And Ianto is the overprotective but really loving dad. Yeah, that’s about right,” I said, rambling. Ianto had to explain to the others that the nurses and doctors think that he is my dad and that Jack is my uncle.

“Right. Ok so who are we?” Tosh asked. 

“Well, Owen can be her other uncle, Gwen can be her Aunt and Tosh can be her second cousin,” Ianto declared. 

“Ok, fine. By the way, Happy Birthday! Probably not how you wanted to spend your birthday, but it could be worse,” Tosh said. 

“Thank you. Yeah, well I could think of worse ways. And right now, I’m pretty drugged up so I’m happy with this. As long as I don’t have to eat hospital food for much longer, I should be fine,” I said. 

“Oh! Can I talk to you two out here?” Ianto suddenly asked Tosh and Gwen. They went out into the corridor and Tosh and Gwen left, but Ianto came back in. “They’re coming back, they’re just running an errand for me,” he said.

I nodded my head. I’m starting to feel sleepy, probably because the anaesthetic is still in my system and the drugs they gave me were pretty strong. I drifted off into a dreamless sleep. When I woke up, the nurses were doing their hourly observations (obs for short), and Jack and Ianto were nowhere to be seen. Owen was sitting in a chair by my bed, typing away on his phone. He looked up as the nurse was putting the blood pressure cuff on my arm.

“Hey. How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Sleepy. Where’s Ia – dad and Uncle Jack?” I asked, glancing at the nurse.

“They’re at your dad’s house picking up some supplies for you. Pyjamas, toiletries, books and things. They’ll be back soon.” He told me. 

The nurse finished with her obs, and she left. I fell back to sleep. I woke to the sound of a child crying somewhere in the paediatrics ward. The drugs have worn off and my arm is feeling quite sore. I looked around and on my right was Ianto and on my left was Jack. Ianto was asleep, snoring softly. Jack was awake, just sitting there staring at nothing in particular, obviously consumed in his own thoughts. I tried to move without hurting my arm, but it didn’t work. I moaned at the pain, which pulled Jack back into reality. He helped me move and put a pillow under my arm, for support. 

“How you feeling?” he asked in a soft whisper.

“The drugs have worn off, so I’m a bit sore. But they say that pain is good. Without pain, you wouldn’t know you were hurt. I’ll live,” I told him. He smiled at that. “You were pretty lost in your own thoughts over there. What were you thinking about?” I asked him. He grimaced, so I’m assuming not happy thoughts.

“Just how it was my fault that you ended up in here,” he answered. Not happy thoughts indeed.

“Jack-“ I started.

“No, don’t try to say that it wasn’t me. Cause it was. If I hadn’t led the team in to attack with it so close to you, you would’ve been fine. You wouldn’t have to have surgery, or be here right now, in pain. I didn’t know that it was near you, if I had of known, I would’ve waited or drawn it away from you. I – I didn’t realise. I’m sorry, so sorry.” 

“Jack, listen to me. I don’t blame any of you. Accidents happen. If it’s anyone’s fault then it’s mine. I agreed to come with you guys. Jack, don’t tie yourself in blame and guilt.”

“But-“

“No. No buts. Anyway, I need to go to the toilet. And yes you needed to know that, cause I need help to get up. Please?” I asked Jack.

“Yeah, sure.” Jack helped me get up and he let me lean on him for the small walk to the toilet, with me dragging my IV drip behind me. We reached the toilet and I went in to do my business. 

Jack was standing by the door when I came out. 

“I want to go for a little walk. I need to stretch. I wasn’t designed to stay in one place for too long. Walk with me?” I asked. He laughed and held out his arm. I linked my good arm with his and he grabbed my drip for me. 

We walked around the ward. The nurses smiled at us as we walked past. All the kids were asleep because it was 3’oclock in the morning. We stopped at the kitchen so Jack could get him and Ianto something to eat and to grab a quick coffee, even though it wasn’t up to Ianto’s standards. We walked back to my bed, Jack with the food, me with my arm tucked gingerly into my side. Jack walked me to the side of my bed and helped me climb up on it. He then walked around to Ianto and woke him. 

Ianto took the coffee and left the food until he was more awake. He took a sip and grimaced at the taste. 

“Ugh. This coffee is horrible,” Ianto complained. He drank it anyway. “How are you feeling?” He asked me.

“Um, a bit sore now that the painkillers have worn off.” I told him. He looked concerned about that and went out to talk to the nurses. Jack just rolled his eyes.  
Ianto came back with a nurse who announced that her name was Amy and that she was my nurse until midday. She asked me how much pain I was in, using the scale from 1 to 10. I told her a 9. She went and got some Endone to put into my drip.   
Once the Endone was rushing through my veins, she asked me if there was anything else I would like. I said no. She left and said that if I needed anything to just ring the button.

Jack and Ianto returned to their seats. It was only then that I realised that there were flowers on my bedside table.

“Who got the flowers?” I asked.

“Tosh did. She came in but you were asleep and she didn’t want to wake you,” Jack answered. “Owen will be coming in tomorrow morning to check up on you. He doesn’t really like the idea of someone he knows going to other doctors, so just put up with him.”

“Ok.” I answered. I didn’t feel too good. My stomach was doing backflips. “Jack call the nurse. I feel sick.”

Jack called the nurse. She came in and asked me if I felt nauseous. I nodded and she said that it is common to feel sick after taking Endone. She gave me some medicine through my drip to help with the nausea.

“How long am I going to need the drip in for? And how long until I can go home?” I asked the nurse. 

“You are quite de-hydrated, so for another day or two. And the doctors will come and see how you are tomorrow and you can ask them how long you are going to be in here for, cause I frankly have no idea. May I ask what happened?” The nurse asked. Jack and Ianto glanced at each other, but I already had a cover story.

“I was walking down the street when, out of nowhere a dog came and jumped onto me, taking me down. I held up my arm and it bit down on it. It then ran away. I think it was a stray dog,” I said. 

“Oh my goodness, that must have been terrifying. I hope they catch the dog before it can cause anymore harm,” the nurse said. She left after that. 

Jack and Ianto just looked at me. “What? I figured that we needed a cover story, and so I made one up.” 

“Ok then.” Jack stated.

I was feeling pretty tired again from the painkillers, so I decided to go back to sleep.


	11. Chapter 11

I woke to find Jack and Ianto gone. It was light outside. I looked at the time. 7’oclock in the morning. Sometime over night a boy must have been brought in because he was in the bed opposite me. Who I guess were his parents were sitting in chairs exactly like the ones next to my bed. They saw me looking and smiled at me.

“Hi. Your dad and uncle have gone to get a ‘real’ coffee. My name’s Jen and this is my husband, Mike. This is our son, Sam.” They introduced themselves. 

“Hello. My name’s Caitlin. My dad is Ianto and my uncle is Jack. What is Sam in here for?” I asked politely.

“Sammy is in for suspected appendicitis. What about you?” Jen asked.

“Um. I’m in for a dog mauling. It bit my arm and they had repair all the nerves and tendons and cartilage.” I said. Jen and Mike glanced at each other.

“Oh, that’s horrible. How long are you going to be in here for?” Jen asked.

“Well I have to have the drip in for another day or two because I’m de-hydrated. And I find out today how long I have to stay. So, what’s happening with Sam? Are they just monitoring him?” I asked.

“They’re going to have the doctors look at him today, and see whether he is going to have surgery or not,” Mike said. That was the first time he had spoken. He had a deep and rich voice. 

Jack and Ianto walked in, coffee’s in hand. They saw that I was awake and came right over and fussed about me. Once they had made sure I was all right, they went over to talk to Jen and Mike. Sam woke up and decided to come over and talk to me. He was 16 and lived not that far from the Hub. He looked like a young version of Jared Padalecki from Supernatural, which was ironic because his name was Sam and his mum calls him Sammy. 

We talked for a while. It turns out that we liked the same TV shows like Sherlock and Supernatural. We liked the same movies and books. We have quite a lot in common. We decided to exchange numbers, saying that we were now friends. It also helped that he was quite attractive. 

Sam went back to his own bed when the doctors came to see me. They told me that I had to stay in hospital for at least a week, because they wanted to know whether or not they had fixed anything and whether or not I needed more surgery. Great. Just what I wanted, a week or more in hospital. They left and Jack went to go and tell the others, using his earpiece. 

“Grrrrrr. Why do I have to stay in here though? Why can’t I go home and then come back in?” I asked Ianto. 

“I don’t know. But it’s the doctors orders so deal with it kiddo,” he said smiling.

“But I don’t want to deal with it!” I complained. 

“Tough. You’re in here until the docs say you can leave. At least you have Sam for company right?” Ianto asked, giving me a wink. I slapped his arm with my left hand. “Ow! What did I do?” He asked.

“You know what. You’re not meant to be promoting that sort of stuff. But yeah, you’re right.” Ianto smirked at that.

I decided to go for another walk, and I asked Sam if he wanted to join me. He agreed and his mum made a fuss over him, and she made him take his phone with him. 

“Sorry about my mum. She can get really protective,” he said.

“Don’t worry about it. My mum acted like that when she wanted to,” I said, using past tense. Sam must have picked up on it.

“Past tense. She’s not around anymore?” He asked.

“Nah. She passed away recently.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Your dad must be finding it hard to cope.”

“What? Oh. Yeah, I guess. Although I think it’s affected me more than him.”

“Okay. What accent is that?” He asked, changing the topic.

“Australian,” I responded.

“I’ve never met an Australian before. Did you just move here?”

“Yeah. Dad didn’t want to have things reminding him about my mum, so we moved here. My dad is from here, that’s why he has an accent. But my mum and I were born in Australia.”

“Oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pry or anything,” he apologised. 

“No, no it’s ok. You were just striking up a conversation, that’s all. So what about you? Born here?” I asked.

“Yeah. All my family are Welsh. I have lived here all my life.” 

“Yeah.” We headed back to our ward and we decided to sit on my bed and watch the crappy TV that the hospital has. He got uncomfortable, so he laid back. I got up and went around the bed, so that my bad arm was on the outside, and used Sam’s chest as a pillow. He wrapped his arm around my waist, being careful of my arm. 

Jack and Ianto must’ve been out with Sam’s parents because they were nowhere to be seen. Content with lying there, I started to feel sleepy. Sam noticed this and kissed my head.

“Sweet dreams,” he whispered into my ear.

I fell asleep. I dreamed about a land with unicorns and marshmallow clouds. Also, everything had wings. No matter what it was, it had wings. That made it hard. 

I woke up and thought to myself, what the fuck? What is wrong with my brain? Sam was still there, but he had fallen asleep as well. Jack and Ianto were back, as well as Sam’s parents. Jack showed me a photo, which was of Sam and me. We were both asleep, and we looked really cute. I just shook my head at Jack. 

“What? It was just too cute!” He said.

“You’re turning sappy.” I said to Jack. Ianto laughed. 

“Me? Sappy?” Jack feigned. 

“Yes, you. Yes, sappy,” Ianto joined in. 

Sam woke up then. “Who’s sappy?”

“My uncle Jack. He took a photo of us sleeping. He’s turning sappy,” I said. Sam laughed. 

“Oi, I’m sitting right here,” Jack complained.

“But we love you anyway, Jack. We love you just the way you are,” I said, teasingly.   
Sam, Ianto and I laughed at Jack, who sat there sulking.

Just then a bunch of doctors came in to see Sam. He had to return to his bed. 

“So, what’s going on between you and Sam?” Jack asked.

“Nothing. We’re just friends.” I answered. Jack gave me an ‘do you think I was born yesterday’ look. I sighed. “Ok, maybe I would like to be more than just friends. But we only met today. He lives near the Hub, too.” 

“Well, if you get to know him more, than who knows? Maybe you guys will be more than friends,” Jack said.

“Wait, you guys are ok with that?” I asked. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t we be?” Ianto asked.

“Oh. Well, it’s just that my mum would give me lecture about being responsible and stuff. Not that I would do anything like that, but yeah.” I said.

“Yeah, well I guess we trust you to do the right thing. So, don’t give us a reason not to,” Ianto said. 

“Ok.” 

The nurse came in to check on me and give me more painkillers. The painkillers make me sleepy, so I fell asleep easily. 

When I woke up, Sam was sitting next to my bed. Jack and Ianto weren’t there. 

“Hey, sleepy head,” he said, smiling. 

“Hey. Where’s dad and Jack?” I asked.

“They’ve gone to talk to your other uncle, Owen. They’re probably coming back soon.” 

“Ok. What about your parents?” I asked him, noticing that they weren’t there.

“They’ve gone to call friends and family. I have to get my appendix removed. They’re probably going to take it out tomorrow, because they’ve almost finished doing surgery, except emergencies.” Sam said.

“Well, hopefully it makes you better. My brother got his appendix removed.” I told him.

“Oh, I didn’t know you have a brother,” he said.

“Yeah, well I used to. Not anymore though,” I said, sadly.

“I’m sorry,” Sam said.

“No. It’s ok. I’ll tell you later, but just give it time,” I told him.

“Tell me what?” he asked. He didn’t get it, the goose.

“What happened,” I said, deadpan.

“It’s fine. You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” he said.

“But that’s the thing, I want to,” I said, getting frustrated. Sam noticed my frustration and came to sit on the bed with me. He pulled me onto him, and wrapped me into a reassuring hug. I buried my head into the crook of his neck, and we sat there like that for what felt like hours.

He reached over and turned the TV on, and we sat there, in each other’s arms, watching shitty TV. After about ten minutes, Sam started to get sore, so we rearranged ourselves. Sam was lying down, with me laying cuddled into his side. I rested my head on his shoulder, with my arm lying on his chest. The tube to my drip ran across his stomach and into my arm. We were watching a programme about sharks.

“Hey, I brought my laptop. Wanna watch something better on there?” Sam asked.

“Yeah, ok,” I replied.

Sam got up and went and got his laptop. He climbed back onto the bed and we got comfortable again. 

“What do you want to watch? I have Sherlock and Supernatural or we can watch a movie.” Sam said.

“Ummm, how about we watch Supernatural? I have only seen up to season 6, so I really need to catch up.”

“Ok.”

So we watched Supernatural. I must admit that I cried because of Cas. Sam sat there comforting me. Owen came in about halfway through an episode, so Sam paused it.

“Hey Owen.” I said.

“Hey, newbie. Feeling better?” He asked me.

“Um, a little bit, I guess. It still hurts like a bitch, but it’s getting better. They’re going to change my dressings today sometime, if you want to stay,” I told him.

“Ok, I’ll stay until then. It’s going to hurt for a while, but you’re tough, so deal with it.” He said.

“Oh, gee, thanks. You’re lovely, you are,” I told him sarcastically. Sam tried, unsuccessfully, to keep his laughter quiet.

“Not my job to be lovely. Ianto can manage that.”

“Ok. What’s happening at the Hub?” I asked.

“Not much. There’s hardly been any activity. So, who’s this?” He asked me, referring to Sam.

“Oh, right. Sam this is Owen, my uncle. Owen this is Sam, my friend.”

“Hi.” Sam said.

“Hi.” Owen repeated. “Where’s Jack? I need to talk to him about something.”

“Um, I have no idea. Try him on the comms. He was wearing it before. If not, try calling him or dad,” I said, glancing over to Sam. 

“Ok. Here, let me know when they’re going to change your dressings,” he said, giving me his number.

“Ok, bye.” Owen walked out, probably to find out where Jack is.

“So, he’s your uncle and you didn’t have his number?” Sam questioned.

“Uh, yeah. I recently got a new phone and I haven’t had the chance to get his number.” I said. I felt bad about keeping this from Sam, but I wasn’t ready to tell him the truth.

“Why did he call you newbie?” Sam asked. He really needed to stop asking me things.

“It’s a nickname he gave me when I was younger. Long story, and I don’t feel like telling it now. Can we watch the end of this episode?” I asked Sam.

“Yeah, ok. Sorry, by the way. I was just curious.”

“Curiosity killed the cat, you know.” I laughed to show that I meant it as a joke. Sam laughed too.

We watched the end of the episode, and started the next, but Jack was back. He wanted to talk to me, so Sam went back to his own bed.

“What’s up?” I asked Jack.

“Well, Owen talked to the doctors here, and they said that if you want to, you can go home. The only catch is, Owen has to be near you at all times. So, essentially, you would be staying with Owen until he says that it’s fine for you to be on your own. What do you think?” Jack asked.

“Ugh, staying with Owen. Yeah, I ‘spose. So when do we leave?” I asked Jack. He chuckled.

“Uh, you have to stay in for 2 more nights, because you’re still de-hydrated, and because it’s compulsory, but then we can leave. So, that gives you more time with Sam. What’s happening with him anyway?” Jack asked.

“He has appendicitis. He’s going in to surgery tomorrow to get it removed.” I told Jack.

“Ok. Well, you will be here when he goes in.”

“Yeah. So how are the others?” I asked.

“They’re ok. They miss Ianto’s coffee, but other than that, they are fine.”

“Yeah, well no one can make a cup of coffee like Ianto does.”

“Yep. And don’t I know it. That and many other things.” Jack chuckled to himself.

“Yeah, don’t want to know. Keep those things to yourself, I don’t need to know that.” I pulled a face at Sam, who was looking across the room at me. He pulled one back, and I laughed. Jack saw this and interrupted our face making by waving his hands in front of my face. I pouted at him.

“I was having fun!” 

“Yeah, I know. Just be careful with Sam, ok?” He said. I raised an eyebrow at him, questioning what he meant. He sighed. “I don’t want you to get hurt. You’ve had enough heartbreak, ok.”

“Jack, we’re just friends,” I stated.

“Yeah, for how long? You guys looked pretty close when I came in and it’s only been what? Two days?”

“Jack! I can look after myself!” I said, irritated at him. I could look after myself, and I can determine whether Sam is worth dating or not! I turned away from him, angry with him. He sighed.

“Caitlin, I just want you to be happy. Caitlin?” He said tentatively.

“How can I possibly be happy, Jack? Pray tell, how? When I’m with Sam, I feel happy. Maybe only a little, but it’s better than nothing. Tell me Jack, does it ever get better?” I asked him. He looked at me with a surprised expression on his face. I stared back calmly. 

“To be honest, no. It doesn’t get better.” He looked like he had spaced out.

“Hey, space cadet. Jack. You’re going to have to move.”

“What? Why?” I pointed behind him. “Oh, right.”

A nurse had come in to check my drip and to check if I was all right. 

“Yeah, I’m ok. It hurts a bit, but I think I will live. Maybe. Can’t make any guarantees, though,” I said, sarcastically. The nurse laughed.

“You’re sarcastic, aren’t you?”

I put my thumb and forefinger about an inch apart. “Just a little bit.”

“Ok. I’m going to give you some more painkillers, so you may feel a bit sleepy. Also, you may feel a bit nauseous, as well.”

“Yeah, last time I felt nauseous.”

The nurse put the painkillers in my drip and left. Ianto returned then.

“Hey kiddo.” He stopped behind Jack.

“Sup?” I asked, because I was so cool.

“Not much. What about you?” He placed his hand on Jack’s shoulder. 

“Oh, you know. Just healing,” I lifted up my arm for emphasis. Ianto cracked a smile while the corner of Jack’s mouth twitched up. 

“Good.” Ianto removed his hand from Jack’s shoulder and came to sit next to me on the bed. “Shove over.”

I moved so Ianto could sit next to me. He perched himself onto the bed with one leg tucked underneath him. 

The painkillers were starting to work. The pain in my arm was creeping away, only to be replaced by sleepiness. My eyelids were getting heavier. Without my permission they closed.


	12. Chapter 12

I awoke to Ianto and Jack hugging. They had closed the curtain around us. 

“Ugh. Get a room you two,” I complained. 

“Oh, smartarse is awake.” Jack grinned at me. I rolled my eyes at him.

“What time is it?” I glanced around, trying to get a glimpse out the windows. The curtain was in the way. Damn curtain. 

“It’s just after lunch. You were asleep for 4 hours. Not that long, but enough.” Ianto told me. Ianto had turned to me to talk, and Jack had come up behind him and wrapped his arms around Ianto’s waist. Jack rested his head on Ianto’s shoulder.

“Awww that’s really cute. Hang on, let me get a picture.” I reached for my phone, which was down by my feet on the bed. I grabbed it and opened up the camera. I took a photo and showed them. They scrunched up their noses. “No, don’t do that. It’s adorable. Can I get it printed?”

“No. Well, maybe. Wait, why?” Jack asked, still hugging Ianto.

“I want to make a photo wall in my room, so of course you two will need to be on there.”

“Right. Ok. Oh, the doctors will be here soon to change your dressings. I should really call Owen, and let him know. I’ll be back.” Jack put on his best Schwarzenegger voice and walked out of the curtain. 

“Ok then. He’s just as weird as me. Could you please pull the curtain across, so I can actually see the world, and not be confined to the washed out blue of the curtains?” I asked nicely. Ianto pulled the curtains across. I looked across the room, expecting to find Sam, but he wasn’t there. 

“He has gone to get some food. Do you want any?” Ianto asked, always caring.

“No. I think I might be sick if I have anything to eat.”

“Ok. But you need to eat dinner.”

“Fine. So, what have you been up to?”

“Not much, really. I have been home a couple of times to check on your ca – uh, I mean the house and everything.” He stopped mid-sentence, correcting himself. I narrowed my eyes at him.

“Ianto, what were you going to say?”

“Uh, nothing.”

“Don’t bullshit me. What were you going to say? My what?”

“Oh, what the fuck. You were going to find out anyway. Your cat. That’s your birthday present from Jack and I. We got you a cat.”

“Oh my god, really?”

“Yes.”

“Have you got a photo?”

“Uh, yeah I think I might, actually. It’s a boy, and he’s not named yet.”

Ianto pulled his phone out of his inside breast pocket, or as I like to call it, his secret pocket. He scrolled through until he found what he was looking for. It was a picture of a kitten, only about 7 weeks old. He was a tan colour, except for a stripe down his middle. That was black. It looked like he was wearing a tie. He had a tiny pink nose and big, bright blue eyes.

“He’s adorable! I know what to name him.” I told Ianto excitedly.

“What?” 

“Castiel. Cas for short.”

“Okay?”

“Yeah.”

Jack came back in with Owen shuffling along behind him. Jack looked at what Ianto was holding up.

“We weren’t going to tell her!” He complained.

“Well, she sort of guessed anyway,” Ianto defended.

“Hey Owen,” I greeted him.

“Hey newbie.” He grinned back.

They were just in time, because the doctor walked over to me. He had short brown hair, which he had spiked up everywhere, and brown eyes. He was wearing jeans and a t-shirt, with white Chuck Taylors under his lab coat. 

“Hi, I’m Doctor Smith. How are you, Caitlin?” Doctor Smith asked.

“I’m ok. It still hurts and I can’t move anything in my arm or it kills, but other than that I’m just peachy.” I finished with a smile on my face, although it was pure sarcasm. Doctor Smith must have noticed.

“Right. Sarcastic already. That’s quite an achievement.”

“Oh yes. I value my sarcasm, very much.”

“Anyway, you were saying that you can’t move anything in your arm?”

“Yeah. If I try to move a finger or something, a sharp stabbing pain goes straight up my arm. That’s not good is it?”

“Uh, no it’s not very good. Ok, so I’m going to change your dressings and also take a look at the wound and make sure it’s healing ok.”

He brought over a trolley full of equipment. A nurse came over to help. They made a cut through the bandages on my arm. They gently pried the bandages apart and I got my first look at the wound on my arm. It went from my elbow to my wrist. It was stitched up, obviously. It hasn’t started to scab yet, probably because it was in the bandages. Doctor Smith turned my arm over, gently placing it so that the underside was showing. I had a few small cuts, but in the middle of my arm was a set of puncture wounds, from the Weevils teeth. They had stitched those up as well.   
Around all of the puncture wounds was a nice big blue bruise. Owen started firing questions at Doctor Smith, who did his best to answer them. You could hardly notice my scars across my wrist, but I noticed Ianto looking at them. 

“Can you feel this?” Doctor Smith asked, touching the tips of my fingers.

“Yep.” I replied, popping the ‘p’. 

“What about this?” he ran his fingers up the side of my arm.

“Yes. That tickles.”

“Good. This?” He ran his fingers down the other side.

“Yeah.”

“Ok. So your nerves aren’t damaged. Try to move your fingers.”

I tried to move my fingers, but a sharp pain shot up my arm, which made me whimper. “It hurts.”

“I know. Just try for me.”

I tried again. This time I managed to twitch my fingers, but the pain made me yelp. 

“Ok. There’s something wrong. Try moving your thumb for me?”

I tried to move my thumb, but the pain was much more intense. I yelped, and a few tears escaped from my eyes.

“Ok, that’s enough! You’re hurting her!” Owen told Doctor Smith.

“I need to try to figure out what’s wrong. I know it’s hurting her, but we need to get to the bottom of this. Can you bend your wrist?”

I tried to move my wrist, but it wouldn’t move. No pain, it just wouldn’t move. “No.”

“Ok, what about your elbow?”

I bent my arm. My elbow was fine.

“Ok, that’s a start at least. Now, I need to get some other doctors to come and have a look to find out what’s going on, ok?”

“Yeah, sure.” I replied.

Doctor Smith walked out, probably going to go and get the other doctors. Owen was fuming next to me.

“Hey, Owen?” I asked.

“Yeah, kiddo?” 

“What’s going on?” My voice was only a whisper. Owen crouched down, so he was at eye level.

“Honestly? I’m not 100% sure. But it looks like muscle damage.”

“Will they be able to fix it?”

“Yeah, I’m sure they can.” I heard him mumble hopefully under his breath. 

“Not very reassuring.” I mumbled under my breath. 

Sam came back, and he saw us all crowded around my bed. He came over to see what was going on.

“Hey, what’s happening?” He asked no one in particular.

“They’re changing my dressings, and hopefully doing something about me not being able to move my muscles.”

“Ok.” He came over and looked at my arm. “Well, the dog did a good job at messing up your arm.”

“Yeah, that it did. What’s happening with you?” I looked at him with an eyebrow raised.

“I have no idea. Anyway, when they’re done come and see me. You’ll be fine.” He placed his hand on my leg and then walked away. I could feel the blush working it’s way to my face.

“Well, that was nice.” Owen commented, a smug look on his face. Ianto and Jack burst out laughing.

“Oh shut up.” I shot a glare at Owen.

Doctor Smith came back with a bunch of other doctors. They all stood around me, and it was a bit intimidating. One of the doctors came over to have a look at my arm. She took my arm and turned it over, looking at the damage that the Weevil had caused. She gave a low whistle of appreciation. 

“That’s nasty,” she said in a thick Scottish accent. She basically did the same thing as Doctor Smith did. Again, they asked me to try to move my fingers, thumb and wrist, and again I couldn’t. They all stood at the end of my bed and shot suggestions at one another. They decided they were going to take an x-ray to check for bone damage and an ultrasound to check for muscle damage.

They left, leaving Doctor Smith to talk to us. He sat at the end of my bed. I moved my feet so he had more room. 

“What happens if they find something wrong? Will I have to have surgery again?” I asked, before he could say anything.

“If they find something wrong we will talk about it. I know this is scary, but you have to believe that you are in the best possible care here. You’re strong, so you’re going to be fine, ok?” I nodded my head. “Good. Now, I have to go and do, well, doctor stuff I guess. I don’t like doing ‘doctor stuff’. But it’s part of being a doctor. I just really hate paperwork. Can I get a high five?” he asked me, babbling to himself in the middle. 

I held up my hand and he high fived it. He walked away. “Bonkers that one, I’m telling you,” Owen said. I giggled because hey, Harry Potter much!

“I like him,” I said to the others. 

“He does have a nice body,” was Jack’s input. Ianto rolled his eyes and whacked Jack across the back of his head. 

“He is a bit weird, but he’s ok,” Ianto finished. 

“Yeah.” I answered back.

Owen walked out of the room and Jack followed. That left Ianto and I alone. He reached across and ran his finger over the scars on my wrist. He looked at me.

“Just know that I will always be here to talk to you, about anything.” And that was all he said. 

“Thank you.” I told him. He just nodded.


	13. Chapter 13

I sat there for a while, lost in my thoughts. I was snapped out of my thoughts when Ianto got up and left. Sam saw him leave, and came over to me.

“Hey,” He said in the way of greeting.

“Hey,” I said back blankly.

“What’s the matter?” 

“Huh?” I asked.

“I said, ‘What’s the matter?’ You seem….. Out of it. Sad even.”

“Oh, uh nothing,” I said, the lie evident even to my own ears.

“Yeah, sure.”

“I just don’t feel like talking about it.”

“Ok, whatever.”

Sam sat there for a while not saying anything. I was inspecting my arm a little closer. I hated the scars that ran along both wrists, so normally I would be wearing bracelets or something the like. But with nothing there, the scars stood out like a fluorescent colour in black and grey. Sam moved next to me and I tried to turn my wrist away, but I couldn’t. He leaned over and looked at the scars. He picked up my other arm and turned it over, revealing the same scars. I looked at him, terrified about what he would do. He just pulled my wrist to his lips and kissed my scars. 

“I’m not going to ask, I know that you will tell me when you want to. Just know that I’m here for you.” He said.

My throat closed up and I couldn’t talk, so I just nodded, tears in my eyes. I grabbed his hand and laced my fingers with his. His hands are massive!

“Your hands are huge!” I half shouted.

“What? Oh, right, yeah. I get them from my dad.”

I grabbed his hand and put mine up against his. My fingers finished at his 3rd knuckle. Wow, I mean I knew I had small hands, but compared to Sam’s hands they were tiny. 

“Yeah, no kidding.” I said. He laughed. “My hands feel inadequate to yours.”

“You’re hands feel inadequate?” He asked, amused.

“Yep. They feel like they’re too small compared to your yeti hands.”

“Yeti hands?”

“Yep.”

“Ok. Well, you’re hands are the perfect size.”

“Now you’re being nice. Staph.”

“You’re so cute. I will never stop! Mwuhahahaha!”

“Nice evil laugh.”

“Thanks.”

“I was being sarcastic.”

“I know.”

“But, you’re not meant to say thanks, you’re meant to …. I don’t know, not say thanks,” I rambled.

“Are you okay? Cause all I did was say thanks.”

“No, I am not okay.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. Everything.”

“Nothing and everything?”

“Yes!”

“Okay then.”

“You, you don’t understand.”

“No, I don’t. But I’m trying to and you’re not really helping.”

“I just don’t know anymore! I don’t know what’s going on or why I’m getting upset right now! I just don’t know and not knowing kinda scares me.” My voice broke. “It scares me Sam, and I don’t like being scared and I’m worried that I might get bad again, and I don’t want to get bad again.” I started crying.

“Get bad?” Sam asked, while climbing onto the bed to comfort me.

I just held up my arm so he could see the scars. “Get bad.” I whispered.

Realisation dawned on his face, mixed with worry. “It’s okay. We’ll get through this. If you feel like you’re going to get bad again, just tell me and I will be right there, next to you, okay?”

I nodded into his shoulder, sniffling. Why did I have to say that? Why couldn’t I have just accepted the fact that he said thanks? Why did I have to be so difficult and different? Why, why, why? I sighed and turned my face into Sam’s shoulder. God he smells good.

“You know, my brother has the same scars.” Sam said, his voice sounding odd.

“I didn’t know you had a brother.”

“Yeah. His name’s Dean. Ironic, I know.”

Okay, now this is starting to get weird. First Sam, then my cat, and now his brother Dean. Seriously what’s with all the Supernatural references?

“Okay. So, Sam and Dean. Is he older?”

“Yeah. He’s 3 and half years older.”

“Huh.”

“What?”

“Well, my brother was 3 and a half years older than me. So that makes him 19?”

“Yeah. He was born in May.”

“Seriously? What date?”

“The 27th why?”

“NO FUCKING WAY! That’s MY brother’s birthday! Seriously, this is weird. Well, it was his birthday. When’s your birthday, anyway?”

“Really? Wow, that’s fucked up. Uh my birthday’s the 7th of November. What about you?”

“Uh, the 24th of August.”

“Oh, so you only just had your birthday.”

“Yeah. It was my birthday when this happened.” I said, gesturing to my arm. 

“Well that sucks. Nothing like a sweet 16, here in hospital.”

“Yeah, but I got my bear and dad and Uncle Jack got me a cat, although I haven’t seen him yet.”

“Cool. I like dogs better than cats, but I like cats as well. What’s his name?”

“Castiel.” Sam gave me a look. “What? You haven’t seen the pictures of him. He is tanned, except for a black patch down his front that looks like he’s wearing a tie. And he has big blue eyes. He is adorable and his name is Cas cause he is mine.” I huffed, sort of like a ‘so there’. Sam just chuckled.

“Okay. You’ll have to send me some photos.”

“Okay. So where is Dean?”

“He’s meant to be coming in today. He had to work. He doesn’t like it that I’m here and he isn’t. He’s quite protective. Ah, speak of the devil. Dean! Were your ears burning?” Dean walked over to us. He, like Sam, looked like Jensen Ackles. He even had green eyes. 

“Hey Sammy. How you doing?” His voice wasn’t as deep as Jensen’s but it was pretty close.

“I’m okay. Dean this is Caitlin, Caitlin this is my brother Dean.” Sam introduced. I waved at Dean.

“Oh, so you’re Caitlin! I’ve heard quite a bit about you,” Dean smiled, while Sam’s face went red.

“Good things I hope,” I said back.

“Of course! Isn’t that right Sammy?”

Sam just looked at his brother. “Right. Anyway, mum and dad are probably with Caitlin’s dad and uncle.”

“So probably near a source of coffee.” I added. Dean smiled.

“Right. I’ll find them later. I want to talk to my little brother and his new friend.” He was really energetic.

Sam opened his mouth, as if to retort back, but I cut him off. “That would be lovely, Dean.” Sam looked down at me and I smiled sheepishly, and then sniffled. My eyes were probably red and puffy, too. 

“Cool. So, why are you here Caitlin?”

“I got mauled by a dog.” I gestured to my arm. He leaned forward more to get a better look.

“Ouch. Man, that must hurt. Can you turn your wrist over?” He asked, curious. I turned my wrist over, revealing the inside of my arm. His eyes scanned over the puncture wounds, then jumped down to my wrist. He unconsciously ran his fingers over his wrist. He was wearing bracelets, like I normally would. He looked at my scars for a second longer then looked up. He caught my eyes and held my gaze. I looked down. “The dog must’ve been huge.”

“Yeah, I think it was a German Sheppard or something. The only thing I hope is that they don’t have it put down.” I think this surprised the brothers.

“What? Why?” They said simultaneously. I smiled.

“Because I want them to at least give the dog a chance, to try and help it. If it can’t be helped, well then that’s a different story.” Dean glanced over at Sam, who glanced over at Dean.

“Well, that’s reasonable, I guess.” Sam said.

“Yeah.” Jack walked in. “Hey Jack. Where’s dad?”

“Hey. He’s gone to the hub to check some stuff. Also, he’s going to see if he can bring in your cat for a while. Oh, and he’s going to bring me and you a coffee.” Jack answered.

“Yay! A cat and a coffee!” I was rather excited. Sam just looked at me strangely. “You haven’t tried his coffee, trust me it’s amazing!”

“Okay. So, does this mean I get to see Cas?”

“After I’ve made sure he chooses me over everyone.” Sam chuckled. Dean sat there looking at us, with a hint of a smile on his face.

“So Cas?”

“Yeah. He’s my cat, who I haven’t actually met yet. Short for Castiel.” I told Dean.

“Okay. I gather that you watch Supernatural?” He asked and I nodded.

“Who’s this?” Jack asked.

“This is Sam’s brother, Dean. Dean this is my Uncle Jack.”

Dean stood up and offered Jack his hand to shake. Jack shook it. “Nice to meet you, sir.” Dean said.

Jack turned to me and mouthed “Sir”. “Where did you learn manners like that?” Jack asked.

“Our father taught us. And you have an air of authority around you.”

Jack sat down in the chair next to my bed. “How are you?” Jack asked, looking at my puffy, red eyes.

“I’m okay.” You could hear my lie laced in my voice. Jack just looked at me. I mouthed, “I’ll talk later” to him. He nodded. 

Sam, Dean and I sat there talking for ages. Jack was on his laptop doing something. Eventually Ianto came back, with a cat and coffee.

Sam and Dean decided it was time to go and find their parents.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

“Hey.” I greeted Ianto.

“Hi. Here, have your cat. And your coffee.”

“Thanks.” He came over and put Cas on my bed. He was so small! He was looking around. I called his name and he looked at me. I put my hand out and he sniffed it, and then licked it. He then came and sat on my lap, curled up and went to sleep.

“Well that’s interesting.” Ianto’s voice drifted over to me.

“What’s interesting?”

“He doesn’t like anyone. He took a long time to warm up to me, and here you are, just in a minute and he’s asleep in your lap.” He huffed.

“Aww. He’s adorable. I love you guys.” I said to Jack and Ianto. They both smiled at me.

“That’s the first time you’ve said that.” Jack commented.

“Because it’s true.” I ran my fingers down Cas’ back and he started purring loudly. I took a sip of my coffee. Of course it’s absolutely perfect. Sam and Dean came back without their parents.

“Sam, come here.” Sam walked over, followed by Dean. “Try some.” I offered him some of my coffee. He took a sip and his eyes widened.

“Oh my god, that’s the best coffee I’ve ever had. It’s perfect, Ianto.” He said to Ianto.

“Thank you Sam.” Ianto said. “And this is?” He gestured to Dean.

“That’s my brother, Dean. Dean, that’s Caitlin’s dad, Ianto.”

Ianto looked at Dean. “Hello Dean.”

“Nice to meet you, sir.” Dean said in response.

“Please, call me Ianto. Jack’s sir.” He smiled at Jack.

I chuckled at their inside joke. “Want to try some Dean?” I asked. He accepted my offer and tried some. His reaction was the same as Sam’s.

Meanwhile, Sam was sitting on the edge of my bed, looking at Cas. “You’re right. He does look like Cas. Is he asleep?”

“I don’t know. Hang on.” I lifted up Cas’ paw, and he opened his eyes. He looked at me and I held my hand out. He snuggled into my palm. Sam put his hand down and Cas looked at it. He smelt it then licked Sam’s fingers. He then proceeded to try and bite them. Sam picked him up and hugged him to his chest. Cas looked at me and then started purring. Dean put his hand out and Cas nibbled on his fingers. “He’s adorable.” I reiterated.

“That he is.” Sam agreed with me.

“He is very cute.” Dean said.

Cas started to squirm so Sam put him back onto the bed. He ran up to me and pounced on my leg. I tickled him with my fingers, which made him roll onto his back and tried to grab my fingers to bite them. I tickled his belly while he chewed on my thumb, kicking my hand with his back legs. I grabbed his back legs, and he had a spaz attack. He then decided that he would try to climb up my front, to my shoulder. He was halfway up when he fell. He looked up at me with his big blue eyes. I picked him up and put him on my shoulder. He sat there, looking out at Sam and Dean, who both had big goofy grins plastered on their faces. He meowed, a tiny little squeak.

“Aww he can’t meow properly yet.” Sam said.

“God, get you near a cat and you go all mushy on me,” I said, playfully rolling my eyes.

“Hey, I’m allowed to get all mushy, just look at him!” Sam defended. Cas was starting to yawn, so I placed him on my lap, where he proceeded to turn around twice before settling in to sleep. “What breed is he?” Sam asked Ianto.

“He’s a ragdoll. They said that he might be crossed with another breed, because he has very unusual colouring for a ragdoll. It explains why he’s so cuddly, but it seems that it’s only you he will cuddle, Caitlin.” Ianto said, smiling at me and then at the cat.

“Well, that explains a lot.” I said. I smiled down at Cas, who was snoring lightly. Jack was looking at the cat with a smile.

“Right terror he is. Trying to run out the door when you open it, chewing everything. You need to train him.” Jack told me.

“Awww Jack he’s just a kitten. He’ll grow out of it. Is he DE sexed?” I asked.

“Yeah. We don’t have to worry about that.” Ianto answered. 

“Okay.” Sam and Dean’s parents came in then. His mum gave Dean a hug, and his dad just put his hand on his shoulder. They really look nothing like their parents. They saw Cas sitting on my lap. 

“Is he/she yours?” Jen, Sam’s mum asked.

“Yeah, he is. He was my birthday present, but I ended up in here, so this is my first time seeing him. His name is Cas.” I told her.

“He’s very cute. Dean, can you come and get coffee with me?” She asked Dean, who rolled his eyes at Sam.

“Yeah. I’ll be back later,” he told Sam. Mike, their dad, went to go and get a snack from the coffee shop.

“I’m going to go see what’s taking so long. Coming?” Jack asked Ianto. Ianto nodded and they left. That left Sam and I alone. With Cas, of course.

“You and Dean don’t look like your parents,” I told Sam.

“Yeah, that’s because we’re adopted.” He told me, his eyes downcast. I raised my eyebrows. That would explain it.

“I didn’t know. I’m sorry.” He looked up at me, and he was on the brink of tears. He blinked a few times and rubbed his eyes with the palm of his hand.

“No, it’s okay.” He ran his hand through his brown hair, which made it stick up all over the place.

We sat there for a while, until a nurse came in. “Hello. How’s your pain – is that a cat?” She asked, surprised to see Cas curled up on my lap.

“Yes it is.”

“Okay then. Very cute. Anyway what was I saying?” She asked.

“How’s my pain?”

“Right. How’s your pain?”

“Pretty bad. Probably because of all the poking and prodding they did. And I also need to have an ultrasound and x-ray. Ugh. Fun. Anyway it’s around an 8.”

“Okay. I will give you some pain meds now, so that it doesn’t hurt as much when they do the ultrasound. I’ll be back in a bit.” And she walked out, presumably to get my medicine.

I was getting uncomfortable, so I moved Cas. He blinked sleepily, and then settled again. Wow, how long can he sleep for? The nurse came in with the painkillers and some medication to stop me from getting sick.

Sam decided to try and get some sleep, so he went back to his own bed. I sat there for a while, patting Cas. I fell asleep with Cas purring away happily.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Someone was calling my name, but it sounded a million miles away. It started to get closer and closer and eventually I woke up. Jack had been the one to wake me, because he still had his hands on my bed. I reached out and swatted him away. He chuckled.

“Wakey wakey. It’s time for your ultrasound.” He said happily. I just groaned at him. I was tired and I wanted to sleep. But no, that’s too much to ask for. I blinked a few times and saw Doctor Smith at the end of my bed.

“A bit sleepy are we?” He asked. I nodded. “Yeah. Endone will do that to you. Anyway, I need to take you down for your ultrasound.”

“Do you want us to come with you?” Ianto asked. I looked around and saw Jack, Ianto and Owen. I nodded.  
“Okay, a family trip it is. Now how are we going to do this? A wheelchair will be the best option, I think.” Dr Smith said. I nodded. He went and got a sling and gingerly put my arm in it. I whimpered a bit, because it hurt.

Jack was the one to push the wheelchair. He helped me into the chair, being careful of my IV drip. Dr Smith disconnected me from the drip, so we didn’t have to take it down with us. We followed Dr Smith. I leaned back into the chair, closing my eyes. “Don’t fall asleep on me,” he said. I smiled.

“Why not?” I asked.

“Because then I will have to wake you again, and you are grumpy when you get woken up.” I opened my eyes and looked around. Dr Smith was in front of us with Owen next to him. Ianto was next to Jack.

“Wait! What happened to Cas?” I asked suddenly, startling Jack.

“I took him home when you fell asleep,” Ianto answered. Phew!

We arrived in the waiting room and were told to take a seat. Jack put me next to his chair. I didn’t want to sit in the wheelchair so I went up to Jack, and he pulled me onto his lap. I leaned back into him and he wrapped his arms around me. Ianto sat down next to Jack and Owen sat down across from us. Some hair fell down across my face. “I need to take a shower,” I said, looking at the piece of hair.

“Yeah, you stink,” Jack, remarked. I slapped his leg and he chuckled.

“Shut up you.” I told Jack.

“Caitlin Prior or Dexter?” A woman called my name. I got back in the wheelchair and we all followed her into a room, which was fairly dark, except for the ultrasound machine and a fluorescent light.

“Hi, my name’s Hayley. So, we are checking your muscles in your arm are we?” She asked. I just nodded, still in the wheelchair. “Okay, do you want to take a seat?” Jack pulled up next to the bed and went to step back but I grabbed his hand. He got the hint and sat down next to me, holding my hand.

“Does it hurt?” She asked. I nodded. “Okay. This might be a bit cold.” And she squirted the goo onto my arm. I flinched at the coldness. She grabbed one of the heads, and pressed to my arm. I winced a bit. Jack’s grip tightened on my hand.

She started moving the thing around my arm and over my wounds looking for muscle damage. I yelped out in pain a few times. She tried a few different heads, then decided to get her boss in to check if she missed anything. After he was satisfied, she gave me a towel to rub off the goo. I let go of Jack’s hand and rubbed it off gently. Owen asked her if she had found anything abnormal and she said that she would leave it up to the doctors to tell us, which only made him more agitated.

Dr Smith was waiting for us when we came out. He told us to wait there while he spoke to Hayley about the ultrasound. Jack sat me on his lap again, only this time I was sitting across his lap and I leaned sideways into his shoulder. He shifted to move his arms around me and I could feel his muscles move under his shirt. We waited and waited. I was still feeling sleepy, so I decided to take another nap.

I woke up in my bed with my arm thrown above my head. My other arm was across my stomach, and I moved it gingerly. A shooting pain zapped up my arm, which made me take a quick intake of breath. My other arm was dead, and I couldn’t move it. I looked around and saw Jack sitting next to me, his eyes closed. Ianto was on the other side of me, fast asleep. Owen and Dr Smith were nowhere to be seen. The curtains were drawn shut. I looked over at Jack again to find him with a smile on his face and his eyes open. His blue eyes were looking at Ianto. I noticed the bags under his eyes and wondered if I should say something.

“He looks adorable, doesn’t he?” Jack asked, still looking at Ianto.

“Yeah, but probably not in the way you’re thinking, judging by the smile on your face,” I said and his eyes shot to me. I was trying to move my arm down from above my head, but it was very difficult.

“What are you doing?” Jack asked me.

“Trying to move my arm, but it’s dead. Could you help?” Jack reached across and grabbed my arm. It flopped in his grip and he placed it in my lap. “Thanks.”

“S’okay.”

“So, where’s Owen and Dr Smith?” I asked Jack. He looked around, and raised an eyebrow.

“I didn’t even realise they were gone. I have absolutely no idea.” I rolled my eyes at Jack who just shrugged.

“So, did Dr Smith say anything?”

“Just that he would come and talk to us when you are awake. You didn’t miss out on much. Oh, Sam’s going down to surgery in about half an hour, just thought you’d want to know.”

He’s right, I did want to know. I texted Sam telling him to come here. The curtain opened and Jack turned to see who it was. Sam looked around and noticed Ianto sleeping. Jack glanced at Ianto and got up. “I’m going to go for a walk. If he wakes up, tell him to come and find me.” I nodded my head at Jack who walked past Sam.

“Hey,” I said to Sam. He smiled at me.

“Hey. I did come over before, but you were asleep.”

“Oh, yeah. That would be the Endone.”

He came and sat down on the bed. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ianto’s phone went off. Ianto woke up with a jump and hurried to find his phone. He missed the call because his phone was under Jack’s grey coat. He was mumbling to himself. “Uh Dad?” He looked over to me and saw Sam there. He smiled.

“Yeah?”

“Jack asked you to go and find him. He’s out there somewhere.”

“Okay. I’ll be back.”

And with that, he left to go and find Jack.

“What were you going to say?” I asked Sam.

“Oh, it was nothing.”

He moved and sat next to me on the bed. We talked for a bit. I looked into his eyes, and noticed how sunken they were. Maybe he wasn’t sleeping well because he was worried about surgery? Or maybe it was something else. He noticed me looking and he held my gaze. His brown eyes were wide and his pupils were dilated. He moved his head down. His lips were approaching mine, and then they stopped about an inch away. I couldn’t help but lift my head up to meet his lips.

Our lips connected and for half a second, we stayed still. Then we both started to move our lips. I placed my hand on his cheek. Our lips moved as one, and then he nibbled on my lip. I gasped and I could feel him chuckling. Suddenly I felt his tongue on my lip. I opened my mouth and the kiss deepened. Our tongues moved against each other. I always wondered how girls could like having a tongue shoved into their mouth, but now I was starting to see why. Unfortunately, we are mammals, and we had lungs that were being deprived of air. He pulled away and we both took in big gasps of air. We looked at each other and smiled.

“Well, that was unexpected… And nice.” I said. Sam chuckled.

“Yeah, it was.”

“Maybe we could do it again sometime,” I said, shyly.

“Yeah, maybe.” And Sam pulled me in for another kiss. Only, this one was a sweet kiss, full of love. It was closed lips and it was portraying all the emotion we had for one another. It was really sweet and I didn’t want it to end.

I heard someone clear their throat and Sam quickly stood up. It was Jack and Ianto, who were looking at us. Jack was looking at us with a small smile on his lips and Ianto was giving Sam a stern glare.


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I haven't been active in so long guys. Life has just gotten in the way and I have kinda re-written this story which I might post in a 2.0 version. But I am back! :)

“Uh, hi dad and Jack. I was just, uh, wishing him good luck for his surgery. Anyway, good luck Sam. I’ll come and see you tomorrow.” I said to Sam, and I pushed him out. He looked confused.

Jack and Ianto were now standing there and just looking at me. “What?”

“You know what,” Jack answered. I sighed.

“I was kissing Sam, your point being?” I knew I was being a bitch, but I didn’t need a lecture.

“My point being is you need to be careful! Being reckless can get you killed!” Jack said.

“Oh, now wouldn’t that be a shame!” I said back at him. Hurt flashed across his and Ianto’s face, then pity.

“Yes, it would be a shame! Don’t you see that we are only doing this because we care about you?” Jack asked. The familiar words caused silent tears fall down my cheeks. My mum said those exact words to me, while I was in the hospital with stitches in my wrists.

“Never say that again. Never. I am old enough to understand the risks and take them into consideration. To be fair, I think I’ve been through more than any normal human being will go through in their lifetime.” I said quietly, signalling that this conversation was over. “I’m going for a walk.”

I put my arm in the sling and walked past them. I walked out into the corridor and saw kids running around. I went into the playroom they had there and sat down on the couch. I sat watching kids play, some in hospital gowns, others with the plastic band around their wrists. And then some that I assumed were siblings. It reminded me of the way my brother and I would play when we were little. Innocent little faces laughing and glowing as they played. I wiped my eyes dry and noticed a little boy had sat down next to me on the couch.

“Hello,” I said to the boy who smiled shyly at me.

“Hi.” He said in a small voice.

“I’m Caitlin. What’s your name?” I asked.

“Thomas,” he replied.

“Nice to meet you Thomas. Is your nickname Tom?”

He nodded. “Mummy and Daddy call me Tommy, but my brother calls me Tom.”

“I like the name Thomas. Do you like it?”

“Yeah. Do you like your name?”

“Yeah.”

“Why is your arm in that?” He asked, pointing to my sling.

“Because it’s hurt and this stops it from getting more hurt.”

“Why is it hurt?”

“Because a big dog bit it.”

“I have a big dog. But he wouldn’t hurt anyone.”

“Yeah. What’s his name?”

“Buddy.”

“Buddy’s a good dog’s name.”

“Yeah. He’s getting a bit old now.”

“Well they age like we do.”

“Want to play dinosaurs?” Tom asked.

“Okay.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me down to the ground where the plastic dinosaurs were. 

He gave me a T-Rex. “You can have this one cause you’re older.”

“Thank you Tom.” He smiled when I said his name.

“What’s his name?” He asked me, pointing to the plastic dinosaur in my hand.

“Hmmm. What about Fred?” He giggled.

“No, it has to be a good name.”

“Okay, what about Bruce?”

“Bruce. Yeah!” He grabbed a triceratops.

“What’s his name?” I asked. He giggled again. His giggle was adorable.

“It’s a she. Her name is Tricey because she’s a tri-ce-ra-tops.” He said, breaking down the word triceratops.

“Okay, so we have the all mighty Bruce and the ferocious Tricey.” Tom giggled. “What?”

“She’s not fer – fero – How do you say it?”

“Ferocious. Okay, well we have the all mighty Bruce and the lovely Tricey.”

“Yep. And that is lava.” He said, pointing to the green on the carpet. Which means the blue is land.

“Okay. Is that land?” I asked, pointing to the blue. Tom nodded.

We played with the dinosaurs for a while, but Tom was getting a bit sleepy. So he shoved a book into my hands and we sat down on the couch. I read the book to him, which was about dinosaurs of course. He fell asleep with his head on my shoulder. I sat there, looking at the other children. A couple walked in and saw Tom and came over.

“Hi. So you’ve met Tom huh?” Asked a woman.

“Yeah. He’s a lovely kid. Likes dinosaurs.” I said and they chuckled. They woke Tom up and the man picked him up. Tom gave me a little wave and I waved back. I think I just made a new friend.

I saw Ianto outside and tried not to be noticed. He came in and sat down next to me. Damn. We sat there in silence for a while.

“I’m going to get some food. Want anything?” He asked.

“Yeah, sure.” And we left.

We went to the kitchen and Ianto got some food for him and Jack, while I got myself an ice block. We walked back to my bed. Jack was lying down on it, reading one of my books. I walked over and squeezed myself under his arms. He moved over. We were lying so that my head was on his shoulder and my back was against his chest. He was reading The Hobbit. Ianto sat down across from us. I reached for his hand and he moved closer, so that I could hold his hand. Jack started reading aloud.

He was up to chapter 3 when Dr Smith came in.

“It’s time for your x-ray missy.” He smiled at us. Jack put the book down and helped me into the wheelchair again. We walked to the x-ray waiting room, Owen joining us a minute later with a bag of chips in his hand. He offered us some. I shook my head, but Jack wanted some. He passed me off to Ianto, who sat me on his lap. We waited for a good 10 minutes until they called my name. Ianto wheeled me in and the x-ray person looked at me weirdly. I just smiled at her. She positioned my arm without saying anything and then took the x-ray.

“Jesus Christ!” Owen exclaimed.

“What?” I asked Owen, kind of scared.

“Uh, nothing.” He lied.

“Yeah right. Tell me Owen Harper!”

“Okay! You’re arm is shattered. Your bones are nothing from an inch away from your elbow to your wrist.” He told me.

“W-what does that mean?” My voice was shaking.

“It either means a lot more surgery, and even then there’s no guarantees, or you may… lose your arm.” He saw me about to burst into tears. “I’m sorry. We’ll let Dr Smith decide, yeah?” He came over and hugged me. Owen actually hugged me.

“You scared her Owen!” Jack said.

“Jack, don’t. I asked for the truth, and that’s what he told me.” I said.

Jack walked over with the chair again. We all walked back to my bed where I curled up into a ball and pulled the covers over my head to try and conceal my tears. Nobody disturbed me. I was exhausted, so I fell asleep.

“Hey, wake up. Come on. Dr Smith is here.” I think it was Ianto who was trying to wake me up. “I brought you a coffee.” At the mention of coffee, I poked my head out. Ianto smiled and offered it to me. I gulped some down and sat up. I rubbed my eyes and ran my fingers through my hair. It was like a birds nest, and my fingers got stuck halfway down, so I just gave up. Dr Smith smiled at me.

“Sorry to wake you. I have mostly bad news, I’m afraid.” His smile changed to a more sombre look. “I’m afraid that the bones in your arm are beyond repair. We will – “


	17. Chapter 17

“Sorry, but we are taking her now. Torchwood, Doctor Owen Harper.” Owen cut him off. “Grab everything and let’s go.”

“What about Sam?” I asked. Sam looked up at his name. Oh, he was back from surgery.

“Hurry up. You have 5 minutes.”

I walked over to Sam to find him alone. “Hey.”

“Hey.” His voice was scratchy.

“I have to go. But we can still see each other, I mean if you’d like to.” I said shyly.

He smiled at me. “Of course.”

I leaned down and kissed him goodbye. As I was leaving he put his hand up to his ear and mouthed, “call me”.

“I will.” I said. The SUV was parked outside. I climbed in with a little help from Jack. Gwen was driving. I nodded to her. She nodded back. The others climbed in and we took off.

“Go easy.” Jack told her. She smiled sheepishly.

“Sorry.”

We drove to the Hub. We all got out, and Owen told me to follow him. He took me into the examination area. I sat down on the bed.

“Okay, what’s going on?” I asked Owen.

“Well, I figured out a way of healing you that doesn’t involve any surgery. All I have to do is give you some medicine through your IV and it will help you heal. It might make you sick though.”

“Okay then. How long is this meant to take?”

“About 6 weeks until your arm is fully useable.”

“Okay.”

“Now hold still.” He put the tip of a needle into my IV. The liquid inside was a milky white colour and when it entered my veins, it was warm. I could feel it travelling up my arm. It was a very weird sensation. It hit my heart and spread around my body. As it hit my arm a sharp pain zapped up my arm. I gasped at the sudden pain.

“What? What is it?” Owen asked with concern on his face.

“It – it hurts.” I gasped as another sharp pain went flying up my arm.

“Oh, yeah. Kinda forgot to tell you that.” Owen looked sheepish.

“Gee, thanks.”

“But yeah, it is going to hurt for the first week. Also we can’t have you moving your arm, so we need to put it in a cast.”

“Okay, but before you do that can I have a shower? I really need one. Also, I would like clean clothes –“ I was cut off by Ianto.

“I have them. Thought that you would like some clean clothes. Black jeans, skull t-shirt, big Hurley jumper – blue of course, and Nike’s.”

“Oh Ianto. You’re the best. You know me so well.”

“Anytime. Also, it’s kinda my job. Anyway, showers are down the hall, then turn right, then left, then continue straight, then –“

“Can you just show me?”

“Okay. Follow me.”

I followed Ianto down into one of the many corridors and we eventually ended up at a sort of change room with showers and lockers. Ianto went to leave.

“Ianto? I can’t wash my hair, could you maybe help?” I asked, awkwardly.

“Oh. Uh, okay, sure.”

I turned the taps on, and then adjusted them so I could find the perfect amount of heat. I stripped down and stepped into the shower. Luckily there was enough steam so I could only see the outline of Ianto’s body, slouched against the wall. I quickly got my hair wet and then grabbed the towel and wrapped it around me. I walked out to Ianto and put the shampoo bottle in his hand. He put some onto his hand and lathered it in my hair. When he was done I walked back into the water and rinsed it off. I did the same thing with the conditioner. Ianto waited for me to finish. I turned the water off and grabbed my towel and dried myself. Ianto handed me my clothes and I put them on, well mostly Ianto had to help. We walked out to the others. Tosh made a fuss over my hair, and she brushed it. Owen was waiting, so I went down there.

“Blue, I’m guessing?” He asked, referring to the plaster colour. I just nodded my head.

He set about putting the cotton on, then the blue plaster. This time he didn’t pause at my scars; he just kind of looked at them. The plaster was warm and melded to the shape of my arm. The plaster went up above my elbow, and finished halfway up my upper arm. Great, I can’t use this arm now for anything.

“Just sit there and let it dry. I’ll be back in a bit.” Owen ran up the stairs and headed into Jack’s office.

I looked around. Ianto was nowhere to be seen, probably in the archives. Tosh was tapping away on her computer. Gwen was looking at her computer screen with disinterest. I saw movement out the corner of my eye. I looked up and Jack was there looking down at me. His face was set in a frown. He caught my eye and his face didn’t soften. Owen running down the stairs made me look away. He checked that my cast was dry.

“Okay, you can go now. Just don’t use that hand at all until I say so. I’m afraid we have to leave the IV in your other hand until your arm is fully healed.” Owen said. I nodded and pulled my jumper sleeves down, finding it a bit difficult with my cast.

I looked back up to where Jack was standing. He was still there, with that frown on his face. He was still looking at me. I walked up the stairs to the main level of the Hub.

“Caitlin, can I talk to you?” Jack asked. I looked up and nodded.

I walked up the stairs to Jack’s office. He walked in with me and sat me down in a chair across from him. He sat down in his chair and clasped his hands together and put them under his chin, elbows leaning on the table.


	18. Chapter 18

“Can I have your arm please?” He asked me, seriousness written all over his face. I silently stretched my arm out. He took my hand in his and pushed my jumper sleeve up. He turned my wrist over, exposing the welted scarring. He half sighed and half gasped. It was like he was expecting to see something, but not this. He looked up into my eyes and I could feel the pain that he held in them. I said nothing. I kept all the emotion off my face, something that I learned from an early age.

“Why?” He asked. There was so much sadness in his voice that my mask just fell and all my emotions came tumbling over me.

“Because Jack. Because my life was shit. Because I lost people, people that I really loved. Because my father is a fucking dickhead. Because I was a failure. Because it didn’t matter if I died, because nobody really loved me.” I said tears rolling down my cheeks. There were tears falling down Jack’s face, which surprised me.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Jack said. I looked at him.

“You have nothing to be sorry for Jack. If anything you saved me. I now have something to live for.”  
I walked around and hugged him. He pulled me onto his lap and hugged me to his chest. He kissed my forehead.

“I love you. I’m glad that I decided to keep you. You mean everything to me, and I need to know that you know.” He said.

“I know. I love you too Jack. And I love Ianto. I love both of you. I’m glad that you decided to let me stay too.”

“We know. We’re here if you ever need to talk about anything. Anything at all. We won’t judge. And we will only give advice if you ask for it.” Jack told me.

“Thank you.”

Jack nodded. “Where’s Ianto?”

“Probably somewhere in the archives.”

“Can you go and find him? Tell him I would like to talk to him.”

“Sure.”

I walked out of Jack’s office. I went down into the archives. I started walking along the aisles, looking for Ianto. I found him at the back, sitting there reading something.

“Hey.” I said. Ianto jumped and looked up. Relief flooded his face when he realised it was only me.   
“Reading something you shouldn’t be?” I asked with a smile on my face.

“No. Just something about Jack.”

“Sure. Jack wants you. He’s in his office.”

“Right.” Ianto got up and put what he was reading in a bag and returned it to the correct place on the shelf. I followed him out the archives.

Ianto went into Jack’s office. I walked onto the platform and sat above everyone, hanging my legs over the edge and resting my arms on the railing. Tosh and Owen were talking about something and Gwen was laughing at them. Everyone looked happy. Well, as happy as you can be, working here. I took my phone out and plugged my headphones in. I turned the volume up and hit play. Fall Out Boy blasted through my headphones into my ears. I sat there just looking. Observing. Noticing things that I didn’t know before. It was actually really nice. Jack had finished talking to Ianto, and was looking at his team. He was looking, no searching for something. I realised that it was me. I watched Jack trying to find me. Eventually he gave up and walked back into his office. I stayed up on the platform. After a while, Jack came out of his office again. Ianto walked past him and Jack grabbed his arm. He asked Ianto something and Ianto responded. Ianto carried on walking. Jack looked around again. Then he looked up and saw me. I waved a little and he smiled at me. He walked back into his office.

I moved back so that my back was pressing against the wall. I could no longer see the others. I was left to my music and my thoughts. Hmm, I don’t know what’s worse. I sat there thinking about Sam, and what has happened to me in the last week. To think that an alien abducted me, rescued by an organisation that hides aliens from the public, and then to be taken in by the boss and his lover. Then on my 16th birthday, get attacked by an alien, is seriously messing with me. I turned my music up louder and closed my eyes, allowing myself to be absorbed into the music. My music taste was really broad. I felt the air shift around me. I opened my eyes to find Jack standing in front of me. I was eye level with his crotch, which is somewhere I didn’t want to look. I looked up and saw him smiling at me. I took out my headphones and waited for him to say something.

“What are you doing?” He asked me. I just looked at him. “Not talking, are you?” Again, I looked at him, not saying anything. “Okay. Just wanted to know you’re okay.”

“I don’t need to be babysat, Jack. I’m just listening to music, is that okay with you?” I snapped at him. I don’t know why, but I was angry for some reason.

“Yes, that is quite alright with me,” mumbled Jack.

“Good.” I snapped at him. He turned and walked away. I put my headphones back into my ears and sat there, fuming.

Eventually I needed a pee. Also, my ass was numb. I got up and walked down to the toilet. When I came back up, I grabbed a bottle of water and a cushion from the couch. I still had my headphones in, so I didn’t notice that someone was calling me until they yanked my ear bud from my ear. I turned around and glared at Owen.

“Well, I was calling you.” He defended.

“What do you want, Owen?” I asked.

“How’s your arm? Does it still hurt?” He replied.

“It’s fine.” I huffed.

“Good. And just to let you know, your cast is waterproof.” Owen walked away.

I went back up onto the platform, except this time, I sat in the corner where the two walls came together at a 90 degree angle. I set the cushion behind me and leaned back. From where I was I could see down to the others, but if they were to look up, they wouldn’t be able to see me. I opened my bottle of water and took a sip. I could feel it slide down into my stomach. I checked the time. It was 3 in the afternoon. I had a bit of time to myself.

So I sat there. I sat there until Jack came up and got me because it was time to go home. I walked to Ianto’s car and got in. I had to wait for them. Jack drove home, which was fun. He sped and drifted around the corners. Ianto handed me the key because they had to get some stuff from the back of the car. I unlocked the door to his apartment and see Cas running towards me. I bent down and scooped him up. He licked my face and purred in my ear.

I felt someone smack my ass. “Move out of the way, you.” It was Jack. I moved forward a bit, but then stopped suddenly, so that Jack bumped into me.

“Sorry, did you say something?” I asked him. He playfully hip-bumped me out of the way while I was giggling. I set Cas down, and he ran to play with some of his toys.

“So what’s for tea?” Jack asked. Ianto was just about to reply when I cut him off.

“Can I cook?” I asked.

“Uh, sure. What do you want to cook?” Ianto asked.

“Chicken. Do you guys have a thing called Chicken Tonight?” I asked. Ianto shook his head. “Oh, well do we have any cream?”

“Yeah, there should be some in the fridge.” Ianto replied.

“Cool. We are going to have chicken with a cream sauce. Sound good?” Jack and Ianto both nodded their head.

“I’m going to have a shower.” Jack announced, and walked away.

I set about finding the ingredients. We had most of them, except mushrooms. I grabbed the chicken from the freezer and put it into the microwave to defrost. While the chicken was defrosting, I sautéed some onions and some garlic. The microwave went off, so I cut up the chicken, giving the fatty bits to Cas. He seemed to enjoy it. He jumped up onto the counter and tried to steal a bigger bit. I waved him away. I cooked the chicken, and then made the sauce. I put on some rice and now all I had to do was wait. Once the rice was done, I plated it all up.

Ianto had gone to his room, so I decided to go and tell him that dinner was ready. I knocked on his door. It opened and Jack was standing there, topless. “Yes?” He asked.

“Tea’s ready. Where’s Ianto?” I asked.

“Having a shower.” Jack answered. I listened and could hear the water rushing through the pipes. Jack picked me up and threw me over his shoulder.

“Put me down!” I yelled at him.

“Never!” He yelled back. He started tickling me, so I started squealing. He threw me onto the couch, where I bounced onto the ground. I groaned at the impact. Jack turned away, chuckling. I got up and tackled him to the ground. “Hey!” He yelled, “That’s not fair!”

“Nothings fair.” I was now bear hugging him. He started tickling me again. Ianto came running out.

“What’s going on?” He asked. He saw us on the floor and started chuckling.

I got off Jack and ran at Ianto. I jumped onto him, making him fall. I cradled his head, so it wouldn’t connect with the floor. We hit the floor with a thump. I forgot that I had broken ribs, and groaned at the impact. I rolled off Ianto, onto the floor. Cas walked up and started licking my face.

“Cas! Ewwww, yuck!” I complained. I grabbed Cas and wiped my face. Ianto started getting up, but Jack decided to lie on him.

“Jack! Get off, you lump!” Ianto’s voice was muffled by Jack’s shoulder. Jack moved down, but didn’t get off him. “Jack, come on, get off.” Ianto said. Jack just smiled and kissed Ianto.

“Never.” Jack told Ianto with a smirk.

I set Cas down and awkwardly got up. Jack stood up and pulled Ianto up. We all walked over to the table and sat down. We started eating.

“Thisisreallygood,” Jack mumbled with his mouth full.

“Thanks.” I replied.

We ate the rest of our meal. After, I went into my room. I put on some music and started dancing around. My bed was in the middle of the room, against the wall. My room was quite big, so I had room to dance. I was dancing to Animals by Martin Garrix when Jack came in. It was building up to the beat-drop. The beat hit and he danced with me. We danced until the song was over, which was really fun. I paused the music so the next song wouldn’t come on.

“What’s up?” I asked Jack.

“Cas wanted to come in here. He’s been sleeping on your bed, so yeah.”

“Okay.”

“What song was that?”

“Animal by Martin Garrix.”

“Oh. Good song.”

“Yeah.”

With that, he left. Cas jumped up on my bed and curled up on my pillow. I un-paused the music, continuing to dance around my room. Cas looked at me and closed his eyes.


	19. Chapter 19

After a while I turned the music off and sat down on my bed next to Cas. He seemed to be asleep. I took my phone out and opened my messages. I realised that I don’t have anyone to text other than Sam, Jack, Ianto and Owen. Well, that’s kind of depressing. I put my phone away. I got my laptop out and opened safari. I clicked on Tumblr. My dash appeared, along with it lots of photo’s of Tom Hiddleston and Benedict Cumberbatch. I sighed and closed my laptop. Nothing will be the same without my friends. I want to call Sam, but I’m not sure if he will be awake so I will call him tomorrow. I hear Jack and Ianto yelling, so I go out and investigate.

Jack is sitting on the recliner with Ianto on his lap. Ianto is wearing a rugby top. I look at the TV and realise that rugby is on.

“Hey, I didn’t know you guys like rugby.” I said. They both looked over at me.

“Yeah. I’m surprised you know what rugby is.” Jack teased.

“Excuse you, I used to play rugby thank you very much.” I said smugly. They both stared at me. “What?”

“You played rugby?” Ianto asked.

“Yeah. Rugby League. Full tackle. We won State Championship and Melbourne’s State Championship.” I told them.

“So that’s why you can tackle. I was wondering where you learned to tackle like that.” Jack said.

“Yeah. It really came in handy for tackling my brother. Who do you barrack for?” I asked.

“The Cardiff Blues. They’re not the best, but I like them. Do you have a team?” Ianto asked.

“Yeah. The Kangaroos. Australian national team. As for Interstate, well I like The Brisbane Broncos.” I say.

“I’ve heard of the Kangaroos, but haven’t heard of the Broncos. Come sit and watch the game with us.” Jack said, pointing to the other recliner. I sat down and curled my legs underneath me.

“Who are they versing?” I asked no one in particular.

“The Scarlets. You won’t know any of these teams, but yeah.” Jack answered.

“Okay.” The Blues scored a try, and Jack and Ianto yelled in celebration at the TV.

I had no idea that they liked rugby, just like they had no idea that I played it. We sat and cheered and booed. It was quite fun. We all got into it, and yelled at the referee when they weren’t being fair. I felt connected to Ianto and Jack in a way that I haven’t felt before. I feel like I actually belong here. The game finished and The Blues won 6-4. Ianto got up to get a celebratory drink for him and Jack. He came back with 2 bottles of beer and a glass of coke for me.

“Thanks Ianto.” I told him. He just smiled at me.

Jack opened his mouth to say something when a crack of thunder interrupted him. I put my coke down and ran to the balcony. I took off my jumper, shoes and socks and walked onto the balcony. I spread my arms out, against the rain. I watched as lightning lit up the night sky. I love thunderstorms. Have ever since I was little. My brother and I used to run to the screen door and watch the storms coming in off the sea. The water was biting cold and it caused Goosebumps to rise along my skin. But I have never felt more alive. The energy buzzing through the sky makes me feel alive. I can feel the energy, all around me, surrounding me, consuming me. And I absolutely love it.

“What the hell are you doing?” Jack asked from the doorway.

“Feeling alive. Come on, it’s amazing.” I answered, urging Jack out.

“You’re fucking nuts.” Jack said. I turned and grabbed him, pulling him out into the rain. “It’s freezing out here!” He complained.

“Oh, man up. It’s great!” I told him. He just looked at me as if I was high. Maybe I am, but I don’t remember taking anything.

“Are you feeling okay?” He asked me. I rolled my eyes at him.

“I’m fine. In fact, I’ve never felt so alive.” I turned around and saw Ianto leaning against the doorway, smiling. He caught my eye and winked. Another clap of thunder moved through the air. Lightening was raining down across Cardiff, setting the whole city into light for a second. Rumbles and claps followed as the thunder accompanied the lightning.

A clap of thunder rolled through the air and I counted the seconds until the lightening struck. 1.2.3.4.5. That means the storm is 5 km away. It’s rolling towards us, over the city centre and out towards the countryside. It came in via the bay, next to the Hub. I wonder how many lightning strikes hit the water tower? The rain came down harder, and Jack pulled me inside.

“What’d you do that for?” I asked.

“You were freezing! I didn’t want you to catch a cold.” He said.

“Fine. I’m going to go and have a shower.” I walked away, leaving Jack dripping water onto the floor.  
I stripped down and chucked my wet clothes into the laundry. I will hang them up later. I turned on the shower and stepped into the nice warm spray.

I opened the door and made a dash to my room with only a towel wrapped around me. I almost crashed into Jack on the way past.

“Hey! Rudie Nudie!” He called. I flipped him off.

I put my pyjamas on and sat down on my bed.


	20. Chapter 20

There was a soft, tentative knock on my door. “Come in.” I said. Jack walked through the door. Huh, I thought it was Ianto.

“Hey. I want to talk to you about something. Owen just rang me, he had been looking through your body scan and noticed some things.” Jack told me. I froze, wondering what it could be. I knew the answer, of course, but I didn’t want to admit it. “If you don’t want me to know, that’s fine. Just know that I’m trying to help you, okay?” Jack asked.

“Okay,” I said, my voice laced with scepticism.

“Owen found healed breaks in your x-rays. One’s that he didn’t find in your medical history. There were quite a number of broken ribs and a few arms. He also noticed that some of the times you went to hospital, the excuses for an injury like a broken leg didn’t match up.” He told me. Great, Owen had found out my secret I had tried to keep hidden for so long.

“Yeah, and?” I asked.

“Well, I want to know why.” Jack said.

“Jack-“ I started.

“Can you please tell me? I want to know how to make you better, but I can’t do that if you keep shutting me out.”

I sighed. Well, here goes nothing. “Because – because my step-dad was a fucking bastard, okay? He was a violent drunk.” I blurted out. Jack stared at me.

“Did he hit you?”

“Yeah. He hit mum too, but not as bad. He didn’t like me because I wasn’t his kid. He used to slap mum, but he punched me.”

“But, why didn’t you go to the hospital?” Jack asked.

“Because mum wouldn’t take me.”

“Why?”

“Because she didn’t want anyone to find out. If they found out, then I would’ve got taken away. She tried, trust me.”

“But how did you hide it?”

“When you grow up in a house like that, you learn not to show your pain. If you showed it, he would only hit harder. He never tried to hit my brother because he could hit back. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t and mum couldn’t. He was smart with it though. He only hit me where my clothes would cover it. And when he did break my arm, well, he made sure it was winter so that I had to wear a jumper. He was a bastard, Jack. A complete bastard. But, he didn’t try to abuse me sexually. At least that’s one thing.”

Jack just looked at me, tears in his eyes. I was tearing up, too. He is the first person I have told. Not even my best friends knew.

“I’m sorry.” Jack said quietly.

“It’s done now. There’s nothing that can be done. Mum really tried to get us out of there. When she knew we couldn’t she made sure that I spent the least amount of time possible with him. But even then, he still made time for me. Sometimes, he made mum watch. She would be screaming at him to stop, but he would just keep going. Then he would dump me on the floor. Mum would try to get to me, but he stopped her. He demanded that she get him another drink. Mum would come into my room when he was passed out, tending to my bruises and broken bones. He stopped hitting mum after a while, because she got a good job. But he didn’t stop hurting me, even when I went to all-girls, private Catholic school. That’s why I did this.” I said, gesturing to my wrists. “I thought that if I went, he wouldn’t be able to hurt my mum anymore.” Tears were running down my cheeks, but they were silent.

Jack pulled me into him. I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face into the crook of his neck. A broken sob escaped from my lips. He hushed me and we rocked back and forth.

“Is that why you have trust issues?” Jack asked. I nodded. “You trusted me. And my team.”

“Because I knew you weren’t going to hurt me. If you were, you would have done it when I was weak.” I said my voice muffled by his skin.

“You’re smart. Too smart for your own good.” Jack said.

“I know.”

Jack pulled me back and wiped away my tears with the pads of his thumbs. “I’m going to have to tell Ianto. He would want to know.”

“Okay. But you tell him. Telling you was hard enough.”

“Okay. Do you want me to stay?” Jack asked. I nodded my head.

He pulled us under the covers, and sat with me until I fell asleep. Jack to my right and Cas to my left.

I woke up and Jack was gone. Cas had somehow managed to make his way onto my chest to sleep. I rubbed behind his ears and he sleepily looked at me. I checked my phone for the time. It was 2:30 in the morning. I moved Cas and got up to get a drink of water. I walked out to the kitchen. I got a glass out and looked in the fridge for some cold water. I found the jug and poured myself a drink. I opened the fridge and put the jug back.

“What are you doing up?” A voice asked from behind me. I jumped and swivelled around. It was Ianto.

“God, Ianto. You scared the shit out of me. I just came out to get a drink. Why are you up?” I asked Ianto, trying to steady my rapidly beating heart.

“Couldn’t sleep. And Jack’s snoring,” he said.

“Okay.” I said and took sip of my water. “Why can’t you sleep?”

“Thoughts, I guess.” Ianto spoke quietly. He isn’t speaking like he normally would.

“Thoughts about what?” I asked, probing.

“About you,” Ianto looked right into my eyes, and I knew that Jack has told him. I didn’t say anything. “It’s not fair.” He said. This surprised me. I was expecting him to say something along the lines of what Jack had said.

“Life’s not fair Ianto.” I told him. He just looked at me again.

“But why you?” He asked.

“I don’t know. And there’s no point in thinking about it. It’s over now.”

“But it’s never over, Caitlin.” He said pointedly.

“It can be if I want it to be.” I told him. He sighed.

“No, it can’t be. This is going to haunt you for the rest of your life. It’s not something you can just ‘get over’. What happens when a man raises his hand and you flinch away? They’re going to ask what’s wrong.” I stood there, staring at him. My vision was becoming blurry and I realised it was because tears were building up. “What’s going to happen now?”

“I don’t know.” My voice cracked.

“Me neither.”

“And I thought you knew everything,” I said jokingly, without any real humour in my voice.

“Not always.” He walked over and took my glass from my hand, had a mouthful, then gave it back. He walked over and turned the TV on, turning it down so it wouldn’t wake Jack. I walked over and curled up on the couch next to Ianto. He grabbed a blanket and pulled it over the both of us. I settled myself into his shoulder, using him as a personal pillow. We were watching some stupid show that they put on late because nobody watches it.

After a while, Ianto pulled me into him more, so now I was basically sitting on him. He made sure that the blanket was covering both of us and put his arms around my waist. I leant against his shoulder so that my forehead was resting against his neck. I could feel his heartbeat. He ran his hand up and down my side, brushing over the bandages still covering my torso. It tickled so I squirmed against him. He chuckled and stilled his hand.

We sat there watching shitty TV until the early hours of the morning, and then we put a movie on. Ianto let me pick the movie. So I picked up The Avengers and put it into the DVD player. I sat there in Ianto’s lap, watching The Avengers, while he rubbed my back. I asked him why he was rubbing my back and he answered that it was because he wanted me to know that I was there for him. When he said that I kissed his cheek and told him that I knew. The Avengers finished and we put on another movie. This time it was The Nightmare Before Christmas. About halfway through we paused to watch the sunrise over Cardiff. It was truly beautiful. Everything was shimmering from the thunderstorm.

Jack woke up shortly after that and came to join us. This time, he was wearing pants, thank god. We continued watching the movie. Once the movie finished Jack suggested that we go out for breakfast and then go to the hub. We agreed to go to a small cafe down the street. I went into my room to get dressed and found Cas asleep on my bed. I smiled and went over to my dresser to pick out an outfit. After a while of searching in my draws I picked out a pair of black skinny jeans, a Led Zeppelin top and a Hurley jumper. I decided to wear my Converses today. I went into the bathroom and ran a brush through my red-brown hair and put it up into a ponytail. I put on some makeup and I was ready. I came out into the lounge to see Jack and Ianto ready in their work clothes. I quickly put some food in Cas’s bowl and we headed out the door.


End file.
